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MONEY 


IN 


BROILERS  AND  SQUABS, 

TOGETHER  WITH 

SPECIAL  CHAPTERS   ON   TURKEY   AND   GUINEA 

BROILERS    AND    GREEN    DUCKLINGS 

AND    GEESE    FOR   MARKET. 


THE  EXPERIENCES  OF  PRACTICAL  MEN. 


BY  MICHAEL  K.   BOYER. 


Copyrighted,   1904,    by     the   Author. 


Price  50  Cents. 


PTBLISHKIi     11 V 

MICHAEL  K.  BOYER,  HAMMONTON,  N    J. 
1901. 


MONEY 


IN 


BROILERS  AND  SQUABS, 

TOGETHER  WITH 

SPECIAL   CHAPTERS   ON   TURKEY   AND   GUINEA 

BROILERS    AND    GREEN    DUCKLINGS 

AND    GEESE    FOR    MARKET. 


THE  EXPERIENCES  OF  PRACTICAL  MEN. 


BY  MICHAEL  K.   BOYER. 


Copyrighted,   1904,    by     the   Author. 


Price  50  Cents. 


PUBLISHED    BY 


MICHAEL  K.   BOYER,   HAMMONTON,   N.   J. 
1904. 


INTRODUCTORY. 


An  introduction  is  hardly  needed  for  this  work.  The  subject 
matter  is  of  such  a  nature  that  its  worth  is  readily  understood. 
The  writer  aims  to  place  in  a  concise  manner  such  information  as 
will  be  of  value  to  both  the  novice  and  the  veteran  in  the  production 
of  choice,  young,  tender  carcasses  for  market,  and  in  order  to  more 
completely  handle  the  subject,  embraces  broilers,  squab-pigeons, 
green  ducklings  and  geese,  and  turkey  and  Guinea  broilers. 

That  much  good  will  come  from  this  effort,  is  the  earnest  hope 
of 

THE  AUTHOR. 

Hammonton,  N.  J.,  October  ist,  1904. 


MICHAEI.  K.    BOYER. 
Plate  No.  1. 


35370 


CONTENTS. 


Pag-. 

CHAPTER  I.— A  Small  Beginning  and  How  the  Broiler  Industry  Grew 
with  the  Advance  made  in  Improved  Machinery,  Improved 
Ideas,  and  Improved  Facilities  Generally.  Pointers  Showing 
why    so    Many    Failures  in   Pioneer  Days 5-10 

CHAPTER       II.— A  Miscellaneous  Batch  of    Pointers    Invaluable    to    Broiler 

Raisers    11-17 

CHAPTER  III.— What  are  the  Drawbacks?  (18-19).  Profitable  Way  to  Con- 
duct the  Business  (19-21).    Growing   Small    Broilers    (21-22)....    _i-22 

CHAPTER      IV.— Artificial  Methods  and  Hints   that   will   Prove    Valuable   in 

Running  any   Incubator  or    Brooder 23-32 

CHAPTER       V.— Artificial  Methods  as  Given  by  some  of  America's  Greatest 
Exoerts— M.   Sumner  Perkins  (33-36);  Poultry  Keeper  (36-37; 
39-41);  R.  W.  Davison,  (37-39);  Mrs.  Harry  E.  Hoak  (41-42); 
Wallace's  Farmer   (42-43) :  Maine  Experiment  Station  (43-45)  33-45 

CHAPTER  VI.— Pointers  In  Feeding,  Value  of  Feed  Stuffs,  together  with 
Numerous  Bills  of  Fare— W.  R.  Curtiss  &  Co.  (46);  J.  H. 
Seely  (46);  F.  Bause  (47);  J.  E.  Stevenson  (47);  W.  H.  Child 
(47);  W.  H.  Jones  (47);  G.  G.  Harley  (47);  Henry  Nicolai  (47); 
Purdue  Station  (48) ;  Ohio  Poultry  Journal  (48) ;  W.  C.  King 
(48);  Geo.  Hall  (48);  Dr.  G.  M.  Twitchell  (48);  F.  Y.  Hopping 
(48);  M.  Sumner  Perkins  (49);  R.  W.  Davison  (50);  A.  G. 
Duston  (50-52);  Farm-Poultry  (52-54);  G.  W.  Pressey  (54-55); 
T.    Farrer   Rackham    (55-56)    46-56 

CHAPTER  VII.— Drooping  Wings  in  Chicks  (57-59).  Roofing  the  Brooder 
Houses  (59-62).  Bowel  Troubles  in  Young  Chicks  (62-63). 
Dressing   for   Market    (63-67).     Raising  Stock  Birds   (67-69)....    57-69 

CHAPTER  VIII.— The  Squab  Industry  as    Gleaned   from   a  Visit   to   William 

E.     Rice,     of    Bridgeton,    N.    J 70-77 

CHAPTER     IX.— Pointers  on   Duck  Culture    and    Experiences   by    the    Most 
Extensive   Duck   Raisers    in     this     Country      (7S-96).       Duck 
Farms  of  Geo.   Pollard     (96-98);      James      Rankin        (99-102); 
l  Weber    Bros.     (102-106) 78-106 

CHAPTER  X.— Turkey  and  Guinea  Broilers  for  Market  (107-108).  Valu- 
able Pointers  on  the  Care  and  Marketing  of  Turkeys  (108- 
119).  Marketing  (119).  Killing  (120).  Dressing  (120).  Pack- 
ing   (121) 107-121 

CHAPTER  XI.— General  Information  About  Geese  (122-130).  Breeding  Sea- 
son (130-132).  Goslings:  Care  and  Feeding  (133-135).  Fatten- 
ing (135-138).    Killing  and  Picking    (13S-141) 122-141 


Plate 

No. 

1. 

Plate 

No. 

2. 

Plate 

No. 

3. 

Plate 

No. 

4. 

Plate 

No. 

5. 

Plate 

No. 

6. 

Plate 

No. 

7. 

Plate 

No. 

8. 

Plate 

No. 

9. 

Plate 

No. 

10. 

Plate 

No. 

11. 

Plate 

No. 

12. 

Plate 

No. 

13. 

Illustrations : 

Page. 

Michael    K.    Boyer 2 

Egg  Yolk— 72   hours   incubation 9 

Six     days'     incubation 13 

Chick:    Fifteenth    day    incubation  21 

Chick:  Eighteenth  day  incubation  31 

Chick:   Twenty-first  day   incubation    41 

William    E.     Rice,     pigeon     expert 51 

Homers   at   Work 61 

The    outside    fly    or    aviary 71 

A  model  house  of  five  pens SI 

A   pen    of    four   months'    old    Homers 91 

Dressing    squabs    for    market    101 

One   hundred   and   six   squabs   ready   for   shipment Ill 


MONEY 

IN 


BROILERS  AND  SQUABS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  Small  Beginning,  and  How  the  Broiler  Industry  Grew  with  the 
Advance  made  in  Improved  Machinery,  Improved  Ideas,  and 
Improved  Facilities  Generally — Pointers  Showing  why  so  Many 
Failures  in  the  Pioneer  Days. 

Some  years  ago  a  broiler  boom  struck  the  country;  but,  like 
all  unhealthy  booms,  the  bottom  soon  dropped  out  of  it.  It  was 
v.'ell  that  it  did.  The  failures  paved  the  way  for  better  success — 
better  appliances,  better  methods  and  a  better  market. 

Why  the  failures?  Too  many  concerns  heeded  the  false  ad- 
vice to  locate  on  "town  lots",  and  to  "  buy  the  eggs".  The  author- 
ity of  those  days  was  not  born  of  experience,  and  in  consequence 
a  false  light  was  presented.  No  wonder  they  failed.  Crowded  on 
the  rear  of  a  town  lot,  and  equipped  with  crude  material  and  crude 
tools,  it  is  a  wonder  that  they  ever  raised  a  chicken  for  market.  But 
the  greatest  loss  came  to  those  who  were  compelled  to  buy  their 
eggs  for  hatching.  They  gathered  them  from  everywhere. 
Teams  would  go  among  the  farmers  and  buy  what  they  had — all 
varieties,  shapes  and  conditions.  The  majority  of  these  eggs  were 
more  or  less  chilled.  The  only  plants  that  made  a  success  were 
those  which  either  kept  their  own  breeding  stock,  or  had  some  egg 
farm  supply  them  direct. 

Hammonton  deserves  the  distinction  of  being  the  birthplace 
of  the  broiler  industry.  She  laid  the  foundation,  and  her  many 
failures  have  been  the  object  lessons  from  which  more  careful  and 
better  equipped  parties  in  other  parts  of  the  country  profited.  The 
writer  came  to  Hammonton  when  a  score  or  more  broiler  plants 
were  in  operation.  To-day  the  number  is  considerably  less,  but  the 
quality  has  greatly  improved. 

What  did  Hammonton's  failures  teach? 

First.  We  must  have  one  breed  or  one  systematic  cross,  anc 
never  rely  upon  eggs  purchased  just  any  and  everywhere. 

Second.     The  "town  lot"  scheme  is  a  dead  failure. 


6  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Third.  We  must  have  improved  machinery,  and  the  number 
of  good  incubators  and  brooders  on  the  market  to-day  have  worked 
wonders  in  this  particular. 

Fourth.  We  must  have  capital.  No  business  will  thrive  with- 
out the  investment  of  money,  no  matter  how  experienced  the  man 
may  be. 

In  short,  a  man  to  successfully  raise  broilers  must  have  capital, 
patience,  experience,  ample  territory,  good  stock,  improved  ma- 
chinery, and  the  necessary  facilities.  In  the  matter  of  houses  there 
have  been  wonderful  improvements  made. 

But,  with  all  this  knowledge,  and  all  these  appliances,  we  do 
not  have  faith  in  exclusive  broiler  plants.  We  have  witnessed  the 
collapse  of  too  many.  As  an  adjunct  to  some  other  branch,  it  can 
be  made  very  profitable.  Combine  it  with  egg  farming,  squab  rais- 
ing, duck  culture,  fruit  growing,  or  general  trucking,  and  there  will 
be  a  year  round  income. 

There  is  no  branch  of  the  poultry  business  that  calls  for  such 
careful,  patient  work  as  does  broiler  raising.  It  requires  constant 
application ;  it  demands  close  attention  every  day  of  the  week,  and 
from  early  to  late.  That  kind  of  work  will  quickly  tire  those  who 
do  not  possess  grit.  Pluck  and  grit  are  two  valuable  ingredients 
in  the  broiler  raiser's  formulae  for  success.  We  never  knew  a  man 
to  succeed  who  was  an  easy  victim  of  the  "blues." 

It  is  a  good  thing  that  this  work  is  so  exacting,  for  were  it  an 
easy,  happy-go-lucky  job,  how  long  would  it  be  before  we  would  be 
overrun  with  broiler  establishments,  and  the  price  of  that  com- 
modity would  not  bring  a  profit  in  market. 

As  it  is  none  but  the  earnest,  faithful  workers  succeed  and  they 
fully  deserve  the  reward  they  reap. 

The  pioneers  in  the  broiler  business  were  men  of  limited  cap- 
ital, crude  facilities  and  practically  no  experience.  When  improved 
incubators  and  brooding  systems  were  placed  upon  the  market,  an- 
other class  became  interested — men  of  capital.  The  latter  erected 
large  houses,  equipped  everything  on  the  wholesale  plan,  went  at 
it  on  a  big  scale,  and  hired  an  "expert"  to  run  the  business.  With 
what  result?  A  total  collapse.  The  expert  was  working  for  his 
stated  salary;  he  was  not  economical  in  his  expense  account,  and 
became  extravagant  beyond  measure. 

"There's  plenty  of  money  back  of  it"  became  the  excuse  for 
"making  a  good  thing  out  of  it."  The  loss  of  the  capitalist  did  not 
fall  so  heavily  upon  him  as  it  did  upon  the  poor  fellow  who  had 
invested  every  dollar  he  had  in  this  world,  and  who  besides  was  as 
deficient  of  practical  ideas  as  he  was  of  cold  cash. 

To  be  brief,  the  cause  of  the  failures  in  Hammonton — and  they 
might  also  be  extended  to  beginners  in  general — are: 

Debt.  They  either  borrowed  the  capital  to  secure  the  plant, 
or  they  had  to  ask  credit  for  the  feed  and  running  expenses,  as  they 
invested  every  dollar  in  making  the  start. 

Stale  and  Chilled  Eggs.  This  resulted  from  their  custom  of 
buying  up  eggs  among  farmers.     As  they  paid  a  few  cents  more 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  7 

per  dozen,  than  the  market  price,  farmers  "saved  them  up",  and  as 
the  average  farmer  pays  little  or  no  attention  to  the  age  and  protec- 
tion of  his  eggs,  a  bigger  part  of  them  were  stale  and  chilled  when 
they  reached  the  incubator. 

Carelessness  in  attending  to  the  business ;  "putting  off  until  to- 
morrow what  should  have  been  done  to-day." 

Inexperience.  Without  knowledge  a  man  does  not  know  how 
to  treat  matters  so  that  they  will  give  the  best  results ;  neither  does 
he  know  how  to  meet  trouble  when  it  comes.  The  more  experi- 
enced a  man  becomes,  the  more  easy  will  be  the  sailing.  It  is  a 
fact  that  nine-tenths  of  the  troubles  that  fall  to  the  lot  of  the  novice, 
do  not  come  to  the  expert,  for  experience  has  taught  the  latter  how 
to  avoid  them.  As  one  becomes  more  learned  in  this  art,  he  reali- 
zes the  truth  of  the  maxim :  "Prevention  is  better  than  cure." 

Overcrowding.  This  is  a  fault  too  many  are  guilty  of.  It  is 
dangerous  ground  to  tread  upon.  Overcrowding  teaches  vices 
among  stock;  it  causes  the  fowls  to  overheat  at  night;  it  means 
crushing  out  the  life  of  the  weaker  chicks.  In  short,  it  means  con- 
tinual trouble.  It  must  be  avoided  by  all  means.  Small  flocks  are 
always  the  most  profitable. 

Rented  Ground.  It  is  a  mistake  to  rent  the  land  upon  which 
you  erect  your  buildings.  No  man  wishes  to  risk  good  substantial 
buildings  upon  the  ground  that  does  not  belong  to  him.  Even  if 
he  had  a  provision  in  his  agreement  to  be  allowed  to  move  the  build- 
ings at  any  time  he  wishes,  the  cost  of  moving,  and  the  racking  of 
the  houses,  would  be  too  great  for  profit.  The  result  is,  just  any 
sort  of  a  building  is  provided,  a  serious  handicap  to  the  success 
of  the  business. 

Lack  of  System.  This  is  too  often  found  on  the  average  plant 
of  the  beginner.  He  wastes  time,  feed,  room  and  everything  neces- 
sary for  good  results.  Work  systematically  done  will  bear  good 
fruit.  Helter-skelter  methods  never  benefited  any  vocation,  and 
it  certainly  cannot  the  broiler  industry.  Make  good  plans  and  good 
rules,  and  follow  them  out  to  the  letter. 

Too  Little  Capital.  What  a  common  failing.  It  takes  money 
to  make  money.  The  expense  of  a  plant  should  be  met,  not  with 
borrowed  capital,  but  with  cash  that  belongs  to  no  one  but  the 
party  starting.  There  should  be  sufficient  left  for  fully  a  year's 
operation,  so  that  feed  bills,  family  expenses,  and  miscellaneous 
items  can  be  met.  This  is  the  only  safe  beginning  to  make.  Even 
an  expert  will  profit  nothing  if  he  has  not  the  cash  to  encourage  his 
work.  The  best  physician  in  the  world  cannot  treat  his  patients 
if  deprived  of  his  medicines.     So  with  the  broiler  raiser. 

That  Tired  Feeling.  This  condition  has  given  serious  blows 
to  several  plants  within  the  knowledge  of  the  writer.  "That  tired 
feeling"  is  akin  to  laziness.  The  man  who  is  not  ambitious,  ener- 
getic and  wide  awake  would  fail  at  gathering  gold  nuggets.  The 
repetition  of  each  day's  work ;  the  sameness  of  that  work,  has  been 
the  leak  that  has  too  often  sunk  the  most  promising  enterprises. 


8  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Neglect  of  small  details  comes  to  the  man  who  puts  them  off  be- 
cause he  feels  lazy  to-day  and  "to-morrow  will  do  just  as  well." 
Take  all  the  rest  you  need,  but  let  there  be  time  for  work  and  s 
time  for  rest.    Do  business  during  business  hours. 

We  could  still  further  enumerate,  but  we  have  said  enough  to 
point  out  why  the  failures  in  Hammonton,  and  why  the  failures  in 
this  line  generally. 

One  lesson  taught  in  particular  by  the  experiences  of  Ham- 
monton, was  that  no  broiler  plant  can  be  operated  by  an  inexperi- 
enced person.  It  is  not  reasonable  to  suppose  that  any  business 
can  be  run  by  "greenhorns."  Operating  incubators  and  brooders 
calls  for  knowledge,  born  of  experience.  Books  are  invaluable  in 
pointing  out  the  way,  but  it  remains  for  us  to  work  the  problem. 
Experience  is  often  a  dear  teacher,  but  it  is  a  valuable  and  thorough 
instructor.  For  that  reason  it  is  necessary  to  begin  in  a  small  way 
and  gradually  work  to  the  front. 

The  early  broiler  raisers  of  Hammonton  realized  as  much  as 
eighty  cents  a  pound  for  plump  broilers  weighing  about  a  pound 
and  a  half  each.  We  do  not  get  such  prices  at  the  present  day. 
At  that  time  they  were  considered  a  luxury,  and  only  the  rich  could 
enjoy  them.  Broilers  are  now  offered  at  such  figures  that  all  can 
have  a  taste  of  them.  The  demand  is  growing,  but  I  do  not  believe 
we  will  ever  reach  the  high  prices  of  twenty  or  more  years  ago. 

With  all  that,  however,  I  believe  the  broiler  raisers  of  to-day 
are  making  more  money  with  the  present  prices,  than  they  realized 
at  any  time  before.  In  the  days  of  eighty-cents-a-pound  the  incu- 
bators were  crude  affairs,  large  boxes  with  galvanized  iron  tanks  in 
them,  which  were  kept  full  of  boiling  hot  water  during  incubation. 
Each  day  a  certain  amount  of  this  water  had  to  be  drawn  off,  and  an 
equal  amount  of  hot  boiling  water  added.  This  regulated  the  tem- 
perature. The  eggs  were  kept  in  a  large  drawer  in  the  machine, 
and  when  the  operator  wished  to  know  the  temperature  he  had  to 
pull  open  this  drawer,  thus  giving  a  chill  to  the  eggs,  as  well  as 
greatly  reduce  the  temperature.  Ventilation  in  the  machine  was 
very  poorly  furnished,  about  the  best  provision  was  by  pipes  in  the 
bottom  of  the  machine,  which  took  in  air  near  the  floor  of  the  incu- 
bator room,  and  conveyed  it  to  the  e^g;  chamber.  Moisture  was 
handled  by  means  of  wet  sponges,  and  this  was  liberally  given.  We 
saw  hatches  where  the  chicks  looked  as  if  they  had  been  drawn 
through  a  stream  of  water.  Once  in  a  while  hatches  would  come  off 
on  time,  but  the  majority  of  them  were  a  week  or  so  late,  produc- 
ing weak,  puny  stock.  The  brooders  were  still  worse — crude  boxes 
with  a  strong  bottom  heat  furnished  by  lamps. 

July  ist,  1903,  we  furnished  Farm-Poultry,  of  Boston,  Mass., 
with  facts  of  early-day  work,  and  from  this  article  we  make  the  fol- 
lowing extracts : 

"Poorly  hatched  and  poorly  brooded  chicks  furnished  good 
grounds  for  the  belief  that  artificially  hatched  chickens  were  not 
as  strong  and  vigorous  as  those  brought  out  under  the  hen.  And 
they  were  not. 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  9 

"But  matters  have  greatly  changed  of  late  years.  We  have 
incubators  and  brooders  that  are  reliable,  safe  and  practical.  Some 
years  ago  there  were  a  number  of  poorly  constructed  makes  upon 
the  market;  in  fact,  they  were  machines  that  did  the  cause  more 
harm  than  good,  but  the  advent  of  improved  machinery — invented 
and  built  by  practical  poultrymen — have  crowded  to  the  wall  in- 
ferior makes.  We,  too.  have  better  brooders  and  brooding  systems 
now  than  we  had  a  half  a  dozen  years  ago,  but  there  still  remains 
room  for  considerable  improvement  in  this  direction. 

"With  this  improvement  of  the  machinery,  with  a  better 
knowledge  of  what  to  feed,  and  how  to  feed  it,  and  with  a  better 
system  of  marketing,  it  costs  a  third,  if  not  a  half,  less  to  raise  a 
broiler  now  than  it  did  in  the  days  when  eighty  cents  a  pound  was 
realized.     The  hatches  are  better  because  of  our  improved  facili- 


Plate  No.  2.— EGG  YOLK— 72  hours  incubation 


ties,  and  the  mortality  is  less  for  the  reason  that  we  better  under- 
stand the  needs  of  the  little  chick  from  the  time  it  leaves  the  shell 
until  it  falls  a  prey  to  the  man  who  prepares  it  for  market. 

"Hence,  at  forty  cents  a  pound  our  poultrymen  to-day  are 
realizing  as  much  profit  as  they  did  in  the  days  of  double  the 
amount." 

The  broiler  business  offers  inducements  to  the  man  who  has 
pluck,  energy  and  cash.  He  must  not  be  an  impatient,  easily-dis- 
couraged fellow.  He  must  be  on  the  constant  lookout,  and  always 
aim  to  nip  trouble  in  the  bud.  He  must  not  undertake  too  much 
— must  begin  with  a  small  plant  and  gradually  build  it  up  to  what 
he  considers  an  ideal  one.  A  man  should  not  undertake  any  busi- 
ness he  cannot  give  the  best  of  personal  attention.  Hire  men 
to  assist  you,  and  not  to  manage;  do  that  part  yourself.  The  busi- 
ness requires  an  overseer  with  brains  more  than  with  muscle. 

As  we  have  already  hinted,  an  exclusive  broiler  farm   is.  ac 


io  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

a  rule,  a  failure.  Too  much  depends  upon  it.  As  an  adjunct  it  is 
profitable.  We  never  heard  of  an  exclusive  broiler  farm  that  was 
successful,  but  A.  F.  Hunter,  of  the  Reliable  Poultry  Journal, 
Quincy,  Illinois,  unearthed  one  at  Yardley,  Pennsylvania,  and 
which  had  been  in  operation  for  fifteen  years.  It  occupied  but  an 
acre  of  ground,  and  on  the  day  of  his  visit,  Mr.  Hunter  saw  about 
three  thousand  chicks,  ranging  from  a  day  to  six  weeks  of  age. 
The  time  of  the  year  was  September  14th.  According  to  the 
table  of  shipments  and  returns,  the  market  price  reached  fifty  cents 
per  pound  in  April,  and  dropped  to  twenty  cents  in  August.  A  drop 
of  ten  cents  a  pound  is  given  from  April  down.  From  9,000  eggs 
placed  in  the  incubators,  4,500  chicks  were  raised,  either  to  market 
size  or  sold  as  half-grown  pullets,  or  were  there  as  well-matured 
pullets. 

Mr.  T.,  the  proprietor  of  the  broiler  farm  referred  to,  places 
the  cost  of  a  two  pound  broiler  at  twenty-five  cents.  He  counts 
two  eggs  to  produce  it,  the  cost  of  which  is  five  cents;  labor,  seven 
cents  ;  feed,  eight  cents  ;  picking,  five  cents. 

Fifteen  years  ago  the  author  of  this  book  made  a  careful  in- 
vestigation of  the  cost  of  producing  a  broiler  of  two  pounds  in 
weight,  and  found  it  cost  an  average  of  fifteen  cents  per  pound. 
Also  that,  as  a  rule,  we  could  rely  upon  but  fifty  per  cent  results 
from  our  eggs.  Mr.  T. — fifteen  years  after  that  statement  of  ours 
was  published — practically  endorses  it.  He  produces  the  two  pound 
"broiler  for  twenty-five  cents ;  we  could  not  for  less  than  thirty  cents, 
hut  Mr.  T.  is  buying  his  feed  in  ton  lots,  while  we  paid  the  hun- 
dredweight price.  That  difference  in  price  really  represents  the 
difference  in  cost  of  feed. 

Twelve  weeks  should  be  the  two-pound  broiler  age.  If  the 
chicks  are  from  hardy  parents,  and  are  properly  hatched,  brooded 
and  fed,  and  also  are  from  a  distinct  breed  or  cross,  they  can  be 
grown  ready  for  market  by  that  time.  One  pound  broilers  can  be 
had  in  from  six  to  eight  weeks ;  one  and  a  half  pounds  in  from  eight 
to  ten  weeks. 

The  best  broilers  come  from  our  American  breeds — Plymouth 
Rocks,  Wyandottes  and  Rhode  Island  Reds.  The  most  popular 
variety  of  the  American  class  is  conceded  to  be  the  White  Wyan- 
dottes. They  make  a  plump  broiler,  are  good  growers,  and  furnish 
neat  and  attractive  carcasses. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  n 


CHAPTER  II. 


A  Miscellaneous  Batch  of  Pointers  Invaluable  to  Broiler  Raisers, 

Will  it  pay  to  raise  broilers  the  year  'round?  Much  depends 
upon  the  markets.  In  South  Jersey,  for  instance,  there  is  a  con- 
stant demand — New  York  and  Philadelphia  buying-  them  during 
the  regular  season,  and  Atlantic  City,  Ocean  City,  Cape  May  and 
other  seaside  resorts  calling  for  them  in  summer.  Ordinarily,  how- 
ever, where  there  are  no  nearby  resorts,  it  is  hardly  profitable  to 
raise  them  outside  of  the  season,  which  is  January  to  June — the 
market  season  runs  from  April  to  and  including  August. 

The  term  "Philadelphia  Broilers"  is  merely  a  trade  name,  and 
•does  not  signify  that  the  birds  were  grown  in  or  about  Philadelphia. 
Nearly  all  of  the  product  that  sell  under  that  name,  come  from  New 
Jersey,  and  some  from  the  eastern  part  of  Pennsylvania.  The  repu- 
tation for  Philadelphia  Broilers  has  been  well  earned,  they  being 
superior  in  both  appearance  and  condition,  and  quickly  find  a  sale. 

There  is  nothing  that  will  help  the  demand  for  a  product  so 
readily  as  a  good  reputation.  The  only  way  to  establish  it  is  to 
advertise,  and  we  know  of  no  better  method  than  by  tagging  every 
carcass.  A  small,  neat  tag  can  be  printed,  on  which  should  be 
given  the  name  and  address  of  the  farm.  It  will  teach  customers  to 
call  for  your  goods,  and  will  eventually  lead  to  better  prices.     . 

Beginners  very  often  make  the  mistake  of  giving  their  broilers 
range.  The)  do  not  want  the  exercise  that  young  stock  intended 
for  breeding  purposes  need.  You  can  never  get  the  plump,  juicy, 
tender  broiler  in  any  other  way  than  by  confining  them  in  limited 
runs,  and  feeding  the  choicest  food. 

A  broiler  must  not  weigh  over  two  pounds  dressed.  If  it  does, 
it  enters  the  Spring  chicken  class.  The  market  calls  more  for  one- 
and-a-half  pound  broilers  than  it  does  any  other  weight.  Gener- 
ally, March  demands  a  one-and-a-quarter  pound ;  April,  one-and-a- 
half  pound ;  May,  one-and-a-quarter  to  two  pounds. 

An  attractive  broiler  will  have  a  full  breast,  a  broad  back,  and 
a  plump  body.  Never  market  big  combed  or  feathered-leg  broilers. 
Superior  broilers  are  quick  grown. 

Arthur  G.  Duston,  who  at  one  time  was  the  most  extensive 
broiler  raiser  in  New  England,  prefers  the  White  Wyandotte  to  any 
other  breed  for  broilers.  Even  for  light  weights  he  found  the  other 
"breeds  unsatisfactory.  He  finds  the  breed  will  stand  forcing  un- 
commonly well. 


12  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

A  gilt-edged  broiler  should  have  a  short  head ;  a  broad,  deep, 
full  breast ;  a  small  rose  or  pea  comb  ;  weight  from  one-and-a-half  to 
two  pounds;  short,  deep,  well-rounded  body;  short  and  broad  back, 
at  the  shoulders ;  rich,  yellow  skin,  free  from  pin  feathers ;  short 
and  stout  thighs,  short  and  stout  shanks,  free  from  feathers  and 
bright  yellow  in  color.  Note  how  well  the  White  Wyandotte  fits 
that  standard. 

A  fat  chicken  is  always  desirable,  and  a  full  plump  body  and 
limbs  will  go  a  long  way  toward  finding  a  customer.  Most  of  the 
chickens  sent  to  market  are  lean  and  lanky. 

Broilers  hatched  in  October,  November  and  December,  will 
come  in  for  good  prices  in  January,  February  and  March,  in  many 
sections  of  the  country.  It  is  the  wise  man  who  investigates  his- 
market  requirements  before  he  starts  operations. 

To  have  superior  broilers,  we  must  take  good  care  of  the  par- 
ent stock.  Overfat  parents  produce  weak  chicks ;  ailing  parents 
give  us  sickly  chicks ;  while  strong,  vigorous  parents  give  us  the 
ideal  chicks  that  can  be  profitably  grown  as  broilers. 

The  American  Stock-Keeper  says:  When  mating  for  flesh,  the 
cock  should  never  be  even  moderately  long-legged,  unless  the  hen 
is  usually  short-legged,  for  the  cockerels  from  such  a  sire  will 
be  gawky  and  stilty  in  form  when  sent  to  market  at  an  immature 
age.  His  breast  should  be  broad,  full  and  round,  and  his  back 
broad. 

Broilers  shrink  about  a  half  pound  each  when  dressed,  so  in 
catching  birds  for  market,  due  allowance  must  be  made.  A  bird 
weighing  two  pounds  live,  will  be  about  one-and-a-half  pounds 
dressed. 

The  broiler  market  practically  begins  in  February,  improves 
in  March,  and  reaches  the  highest  point  in  April.  Then  it  gradu- 
ally declines,  by  August  it  is  very  fluctuating.  During  October, 
November  and  December  there  is  very  little  demand  for  broilers. 

At  one  time  it  was  feared  that  the  refrigerator  industry  would 
cripple  the  fresh-broiler  trade,  but  the  public  was  not  so  easily 
duped.  The  refrigerator  trade  allowed  speculators  to  palm  off 
frozen  and  thawed-out  stock,  to  an  unsuspecting  public,  as  fresh,  but 
refrigerator  stock  is  not  in  competition  with  choice  fresh  birds, 
when  placed  upon  the  market.  The  Rural  New  Yorker  some  years 
ago  told  how  a  certain  New  York  retailer  thawed  out  some  chickens, 
brought  out  of  a  refrigerator,  and  which  had  been  frozen  solid  for 
months.  They  were  placed  into  cold  water  and  allowed  to  remain 
for  a  time.  They  came  out  as  fresh  looking  as  if  they  had  been 
killed  the  day  before — and  that  is  the  kind  of  "chicken"  the  city 
folks  are  often  compelled  to  feast  upon. 

The  middle  of  July  is  pre-eminently  the  season     for     Spring 

chickens,  says  the  New  York  Tribune.     The  delicious  broiler  is 

then  at  the  lowest  price.     Fried  chicken  was     the     delight  of  old' 

Southern  cooks  of  ante-bellam  days,  and  was  served  with  the  sweet- 

•    est  and  lightest  of  pone  bread. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


13 


In  France  and  England  the  broiler  is  of  little  importance,  the 
roasting  fowl  being  preferred. 

"Squab  broilers"  must  not  exceed  three-quarters  of  a  pound 
dressed.  They  sell  best  during  January  and  February.  The  increase 
of  the  squab  pigeon  business  is  hurting  the  "squab  broiler"  boom. 

Chickens  two  pounds  or  under  are  known  as  broilers  (in  some 
sections  of  Pennsylvania  they  are  called  barbecues).  Over  two 
pounds  in  weight  up  to  four,  they  are  classified  as  Spring  chickens. 
Over  that  weight  they  go  as  stewing  or  roasting  fowls.  Broilers  in 
some  parts  of  the  country  are  also  known  as  frying  chickens.  The 
Spring  chicken  is  introduced  about  April.  It  is  the  broiler's  sub- 
stitute. 


Plate  3— SIX  DAYS  INCUBATION' 

In  the  Chicago  market  the  best  broiler  prices  are  realized  from 
March  to  July. 

Chickens  sent  to  market  should  never  be  drawn.  Dr.  P.  T. 
Woods  claims  that  the  undrawn  carcass  is  objectionable  because  of 
the  possibilities  of  osmosis  carrying  taint  or  poisonous  matter  to  the 
flesh.  This  point  is  exaggerated  by  writers  of  hygiene  and  those 
who  favor  market  poultry.  Granted  that  in  some  cases  where 
fowls  are  not  properly  handled,  there  exists  a  possibility  of  infec- 
tion of  the  meat,  it  is  not  half  so  dangerous  as  the  many  chances 
of  infection  in  drawn  fowls.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  where  the  bird 
is  properlv  handled  before  killing,  the  chance  of  infection  is  practi- 
cally nil. 


14  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

We  cannot  control  the  carcass  after  it  leaves  our  hands  to  go  to 
market,  says  Dr.  Woods.  If  it  is  drawn,  and  has  any  distance  to 
go,  it  may  mould  inside ;  or  if  a  fly  does  not  "blow"  in  it,  there  is  a 
large  exposed  surface  hidden  from  sight,  which  may  become  in- 
fected by  some  means  during  transit.  If  mouldy,  sour,  or  fly  blown 
(if  it  travels  any  distance,  it  is  pretty  sure  to  be  one  of  these,  or 
all  three),  it  is  no  longer  saleable,  at  least  for  anything  like  a  fair 
price,  and  it  is  not  desirable  as  food. 

Dr.  Woods  "hits  the  nail  upon  the  head"  in  the  following  selec- 
tion from  his  article  in  "Farm-Poultry:"  "In  dealing  with  market 
poultry  we  have  to  deal  with  many  unknown  factors.  So  far  as  I 
am  concerned,  I  had  rather  take  my  chances  on  an  undrawn  fowl, 
no  matter  how  poorly  handled  before  being  killed,  than  to  have  a 
fowl  that  has  had  the  filthy  fingers  of  some  person  unknown  (per- 
haps diseased)  scratching  about  tearing  out  the  entrailes,  and  fol- 
lowing up  the  operation  with  washing  out  the  carcass  with  not  over- 
clean  water.  The  chances  of  infection  from  such  sources  are  far 
more  numerous  than  any  that  may  exist  from  the  intestinal  contents 
and  possible  osmosis.  Again,  if  the  intestines  are  left  in,  you  have 
the  opportunity  of  learning  something  about  the  fowl's  condition 
at  the  time  it  was  killed  and  whether  or  not  it  was  healthy." 

The  marketmen  are  in  the  business  for  what  there  is  in  it,  and 
it  is  for  their  interest  to  keep  and  sell  the  best.  It  is  necessary  to 
expose  their  goods  for  sale  and  a  carcass  of  drawn  poultry  hung  in 
the  market  stall  makes  an  ideal  place  for  a  fly  to  get  into  the  ab- 
dominal cavity  out  of  sight,  and  deposit  its  eggs,  says  Dr.  Woods. 
The  result  is  that  the  customer  finds  the  carcass  "fly  blown"  or 
worse— maggoty.  The  result  is  not  pleasing  to  the  marketman 
or  the  purchaser.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  opening  up  the  abdominal 
cavity  and  removing  the  viscera  exposes  a  larger  surface  to  bac- 
teria infection,  while  in  the  undrawn  fowl  the  infection  if  any  is 
confined  in  the  intestines,  except  such  of  the  objectionable  matter 
which  may  pass  through  the  walls  of  the  intestines  by  osmosis.  If 
poultry  is  properly  handled  before  killing,  and  is  properly  cooled 
before  packing,  there  will  be  very  little  if  any  contamination  from 
the  empty  intestines. 

The  first  requisite  for  success  in  market  poultry  is  the  judicious 
selection  of  a  variety  for  the  purpose  intended,  says  the  Prairie 
Farmer.  For  the  purpose  under  consideration,  pure-bred  fowls 
are  so  far  superior  to  mongrel  stock,  that  no  one  who  desires  to 
make  the  best  of  it  should  for  a  moment  entertain  the  idea  of  using 
mongrel  or  mixed  varieties. 

Here  are  some  important  facts  to  remember  in  shipping  broil- 
ers to  market:  If  possible,  never  ship  dressed  poultry  in  warm,  damp 
weather.  Don't  ship  bony,  skinny  stock  and  expect  fat  prices. 
Don't  ship  dressed  poultry  half-picked,  with  flesh  torn  in  places, 
and  then  blame  your  commission  man  if  his  report  shows  sales  un- 
der the  market  price.  Don't  ship  to  every  strange  house  that  so- 
licits your  consignment.  Look  them  up  first.  When  a  house  asks 
you  to  investigate  its  references,  do  so.     Oftentimes  you  will  con- 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  15 

elude  not  to  ship,  and  thereby  save  your  stuff.  Don't  ship  dressed 
stock  in  any  old  box  that  is  handy.  It  pays  to  use  clean,  fresh 
boxes,  using  care  and  neatness  in  packing.  Frequently  the  buyer 
is  present  when  the  box  is  opened,  and  a  sale  spoiled  because  of 
the  packing.  Don't  pack  poultry  after  dressed,  until  all  the  animal 
heat  is  out.  Don't  let  some  little  market  fluster  cause  you  to 
change  houses.  Get  a  good,  solid  house  and  stick  to  it.  That 
keeps  the  commission  man  interested  in  retaining  your  trade,  and 
oftentimes  he  will  put  you  out  of  a  hole  caused  by  a  glut.  Don't 
fail  to  carefully  inspect  your  shipment  before  closing  the  box.  Put 
in  the  memorandum  on  your  own  billhead  or  envelope,  showing  the 
count  and  other  data.  Keep  a  duplicate  yourself,  and  thereby 
save  much  annoyance  and  frequently  a  loss.  Don't  chase  off  into  a 
new  market  with  untried  people,  just  because  of  a  possible  tempo- 
rary advantage.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  you  will  lose.  Keep  in 
touch  with  a  good  house  in  several  markets,  and  use  judgment  in 
shipping  to  any  of  them.  Don't  fail  to  notify  your  commission 
house  before  or  at  the  time  you  ship,  and  give  full  data,  so  he  can- 
know  what  is  coming,  and  can  prepare  to  handle  it  rapidly.  On  this 
great  point  hundreds  of  dollars  are  lost  every  week  which  would  be 
saved  if  shippers  would  advise  several  days  before  shipping,  giving 
the  receiver  time  to  reply,  if  advisable,  to  hold  back. 

Never  send  fowl  to  market  that  has  a  full  crop.  Remember,, 
dry-picked  poultry  will  stand  longer  shipments.  Never  pack  culls 
with  good  stock.     Keep  each  in  separate  lots. 

Arthur  Duston  says  it  is  generally  the  bird  than  can  stand  the 
greatest  amount  of  food  that  makes  the  quickest  grown  broiler,  and 
must  be  the  bird  you  should  adopt,  as  every  additional  day  means 
additional  cost  for  labor,  coal  and  food. 

When  hatching  and  raising  for  early  broilers  especially,  the 
Maine  Farmer  says  there  is  not  much  difference  in  the  breeds,  as 
during  the  first  six  weeks  chicks  of  the  different  breeds  weigh 
pretty  much  the  same ;  but  after  that  age  the  difference  begins,  and 
there  will  be  a  steady  and  continuous  gain  on  the  part  of  the  larger 
breeds,  that  at  maturity  is  often  very  considerable. 

Iowa  Homestead  says  some  people  are  in  such  a  hurry  to  have 
their  chicks  grow  to  broiler  size  that  they  begin  stuffing  them  with 
any  and  everything  they  will  eat,  and  usually  end  by  losing  the 
majority  of  the  stock  by  indigestion  or  bowel  trouble.  Then  they 
will  look  wise  and  talk  about  cholera,  damp  weather,  etc.,  when  the 
trouble  really  was  too  rich  food  fed  too  early  in  life. 

The  New  York  Produce  Review  says  some  poultry  raisers  make- 
a  practice  of  keeping  pure-bred  male  birds  and  scrub  hens,  whereby 
a  good  grade  of  market  poultry  is  produced.  These  growers  would 
find  it  little  more  expensive  to  get  pure-bred  hens  and  raise  pure- 
bred poultry,  and  in  most  cases  the  full-blooded  stock  would  com- 
mand a  premium  even  if  marketed  in  the  wholesale  market  alive.     . 

The  poulterer  who  places  upon  the  table  a  plump,  juicy  broiler,, 
is  entitled  to  as  much  respect  as  the  planter  who  furnishes  flour, 
or  the  cattle  king  who  rai.ses  beef. 


16  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Given  healthy  life  and  intelligent  attention,  the  little  chicks  may 
be  expected  to  start  with  one  and  a  quarter  ounce  in  weight — for  the 
production  of  life  causes  a  loss  of  just  about  one-half  the  weight  of 
the  egg,  says  an  exchange.  At  the  end  of  one  week  the  chick  should 
weigh  two  ounces ;  two  weeks,  four  ounces ;  three  weeks,  six  and  a 
quarter  ounces ;  four  weeks,  ten  ounces  ;  five  weeks,  fourteen  ounces  ; 
seven  weeks,  twenty-three  and  a  half  ounces ;  eight  weeks,  twenty- 
eight  ounces;  nine  weeks,  thirty-two  ounces;  ten  weeks,  thirty-six 
ounces. 

"Asparagus  chickens"  are  large  enough  to  broil  with  early  as- 
paragus. They  are  hatched  in  late  July  and  August,  pushed  along 
till  November,  then  killed  and  put  in  cold-storage  for  the  winter. 
They  are  taken  out  and  eaten  in  Spring. 

Poultry  commission  merchants  say  that  one  reason  why  a  great 
many  shippers  are  disappointed  in  the  prices  they  receive  on  good 
poultry  is  that  they  persist  in  shipping  stock  of  sizes  which  are  not 
in  demand. 

The  New  York  city  markets  will  take  poultry  either  scalded  or 
dry-picked.  Boston  market  wants  only  dry-picked  stock.  Chicago 
markets  prefer  chickens,  ducks  and  geese  scalded,  and  turkeys  dry- 
picked. 

The  commission  merchant  does  not  fix  the  price.  He  can  only 
obtain  what  his  customers  allow.  When  the  market  is  full,  the  cus- 
tomers have  a  larger  stock  from  which  to  select,  and  they  always 
select  the  best,  leaving  the  second-class  stock  to  be  sold  at  hazard- 
ous prices. 

Thomas  F.  Jager  says  the  broiler  industry  is  considered,  by 
men  who  have  experimented  in  this  line  long  enough  to  be  entitled 
to  a  standing,  as  one  of  the  main  sources  of  profit  in  the  market 
poultry  business ;  especially,  if  the  turning  out  of  birds  can  be  ac- 
complished prior  to  the  hand-raised  stock,  as  furnished  the  cities  by 
the  farmers  or  small  land  owners. 

The  first  essential,  continues  Mr.  Jager,  in  order  to  succeed 
as  a  broiler  man  or  woman — for  this  branch  holds  great  promises  for 
the  gentle  sex — is  to  have  good  healthy  breeding  stock.  That  means 
stock  not  hampered  or  forced  while  young,  or  where  the  parents 
have  been  inbred  to  get  a  certain  lacing  or  tip  to  the  feather.  The 
broiler  man  does  not  care  a  rap  for  the  plumage  condition  of  his 
breeding  stock,  as  long  as  the  natural  vigor  and  stamina  and  char- 
acteristics to  impart  to  the  offspring  plumpness  of  body  are  found. 

Farm  Journal  says,  in  calculating  what  young  broilers  will 
weigh  when  prepared  for  market,  get  the  live  weight  and  deduct 
twelve  per  cent,  and  you  have  the  dressed  weight. 

W.  Theo.  Wittman,  in  American  Poultry  Advocate,  says : 
"Squab  broilers  for  home  consumption  are  easiest  dressed  by  skin- 
ning. Slit  the  skin  along  the  back,  and  taking  off"  both  skin  and 
feathers  is  the  work  of  only  a  minute,  while  picking  the  feathers 
and  pin  feathers  off  a  lot  of  squab  broilers  is  the  work  of  hours. 
Boiled  for  a  few  minutes  in  salted  water,  and  fried  in  butter,  gives 
you  a  dish  equal  to  frogs'  legs." 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  17 

Squab  broilers  ma)-  be  grown  in  eight  or  ten  weeks  in  brooders, 
kept  in  a  room  where  the  temperature  is  about  seventy  degrees. 
The  Rhode  Island  Experiment  Station  found  that  when  marketed 
at  this  age,  they  could  be  successfully  raised  without  any  outdoor 
exercise. 

The  following  interview  between  the  editor  of  the  Poultry 
Monthly  and  a  large  New  York  commission  firm,  contains  valuable 
information : 

"What  size  broiler  will  be  mostly  in  demand  during  Septem- 
ber?" I  asked  Mr.  Van  Ostrand,  of  the  firm  of  Knapp  &  Van 
Ostrand.  "About  two  pounds  each.  That  is  a  very  popular  size  at 
almost  any  time  of  year;  a  broiler  of  that  size  enables  a  restaurant 
to  serve  a  half  chicken  and  give  a  goodsized  portion  to  a  patron. 
From  one  and  one-half  to  two  pounds  is  the  best  all-around  weight." 
"How  about  the  demand  for  squab  broilers?"  "There  is  little  de- 
mand for  them  now.  The  greatest  demand  is  in  Spring  when  game 
birds  are  scarce,  and  a  small  bird  is  in  demand  in  restaurants.  They 
should  weigh  from  three-fourths  to  one  pound.  There  would  be 
no  sale  for  them  now  at  prices  that  would  make  it  profitable  to  make 
a  specialty  of  them,  because  there  are  so  many  chickens  coming  in 
from  the  West,  and  among  them  can  be  found  all  the  small  chick- 
ens required,  at  low  prices.  Many  who  ship  squab  broilers  make  a 
great  mistake  in  sending  such  bony,  poor  ones.  I  have  seen  many 
of  them  that  were  but  skin  and  bones.  They  must  be  plump,  with 
some  meat  on  the  bones."  One  has  only  to  go  through  the  markets 
to  have  these  facts  about  the  shipment  of  poor  stock  verified.  I 
have  seen  many  a  coop  of  live  chickens  that  would  not  weigh  more 
than  one-half  pound  each,  and  were  miserably  poor  and  thin  at  that. 
The  same  is  true  of  dressed  broilers.  Many  people  hear  that  some 
people  have  sold  chicks  weighing  less  than  a  pound  each  tor  what 
seems  like  an  extra  price,  and  immediately  a  lot  are  sent  without 
any  knowledge  of  the  demands  of  the  market,  or  the  prospects  of 
sale.  The  demand  for  anything  out  of  the  usual  order  is  always 
limited,  and  it  is  usually  supplied  by  some  one  who  is  thoroughly 
posted,  and  is  situated  so  close  that  he  may  watch  the  market.  How- 
ever, it  pays  to  study  up  these  special  products  and  demands,  and 
then  study  tl  e  question  as  to  what  can  be  done  towards  supplying 
them.     But  dDn't  2:0  it  blind. 


i8  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


CHAPTER  III. 


What  are  the  Drawbacks? — Profitable  Way  to  Conduct  the  Busi- 
ness'— Growing  Small  Broilers. 

Several  years  ago  the  writer  wrote  a  number  of  broiler  raisers, 
asking  what  they  found  to  be  the  greatest  drawbacks  in  raising 
chicks,  and  how  they  met  them.  Following  are  extracts  from  their 
replies : 

Austin  Long,  Pittsburgh,  Kansas :  "My  biggest  drawback  in 
raising  chicks  is  the  wet  weather,  but  I  meet  it  with  dry  coops  and 
small  yards  on  the  bare  ground.  I  also  feed  dry  food  during  rainy 
weather." 

Matt.  G.  Robson,  Port  Leyden,  N.  Y. ;  "The  path  is  full  of 
drawbacks,  but  what  one  must  do  is  to  move  them  out  of  the  way. 
Be  determined  not  to  be  beaten.  One  drawback  was  not  to  own  the 
place  up  to  a  year  and  a  half  ago.  That  was  a  serious  drawback,  as 
there  are  very  few  rented  places  that  have  a  good  hen  house,  or 
other  poultry  buildings.  The  result  is  you  have  to  plan  with  what 
you  have — and  a  lot  out  of  your  profits  is  to  build  and  perhaps 
move  the  next  year.  Feeding  rats,  lice  and  strange  cats  and  dogs 
is  likewise  a  drawback.  But  whatever  the  stumbling  block,  keep 
right  on  trying  till  you  finally  win.  The  poultryman  is  not  worth 
a  tinker's  cuss  until  he  wins  by  his  setbacks.  The  more  drawbacks 
the  better  the  poultryman,  if  he  has  grit  to  get  out  of  them." 

Robert  Atkins,  Esopus,  N.  Y. :  "Crows  are  our  greatest  draw- 
back, making  it  necessary  to  carefully  yard  all  chicks.  Gapes  also 
keep  us  on  the  lookout.  This  we  manage  pretty  well  to  avoid  by 
cleanliness  and  dry  coops." 

William  G.  Good,  Bowmansville,  Pa. :  "The  drawbacks  are 
few,  if  proper  care  is  given  the  stock.  The  poultryman  has  many 
duties  to  perform,  and  the  neglect  of  one  might  bring  failure." 

A.  DeR.  Meares,  Hyattsville,  Md. :  "I  have  no  drawbacks,  as 
I  give  good  attention  to  feeding  and  care,  and  have  a  good  place 
for  my  stock." 

Charles  A.  French,  Sandy  Point,  Maine:  "I  don't  seem  to  have 
any.  A  few  are  born  to  die ;  natural  enemies  get  a  few  chicks  in 
spite  of  vigilance.  No  fault  to  find  with  the  existing  state  of 
things." 

Emory  E.  Banks,  Crittenden,  N.  Y. :  "The  worst  drawback  ] 
have  in  raising-  chicks  is  varmints — and  drowning-  bv  storms  in  rais 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  19 

ing  with  brooders.  The  only  way  I  find  to  prevent  brooder  chicks 
from  drowning  in  sudden  storms,  is  to  enclose  them  in  long  yards 
having  at  each  end  the  brooder  in  a  shed  or  house,  with  a  wide  en- 
trance; as  wide  as  the  whole  side  of  the  house  is  better.  It  is  much 
safer  to  have  shelter  at  both  ends  of  the  yards." 

P.  F.  Daniel,  Atlanta,  Ga. :  "I  have  only  one  drawback  this 
season — tuberculosis  struck  my  brooders;  which  was  a  new  disease 
to  me.  It  took  some  time  to  locate  it.  I  must  give  credit  to  the 
Rhode  Island  Experiment  Station  Bulletin,  No.  61,  for  explaining 
the  disease,  cause  and  remedy — the  latter,  sunlight  and  fresh  air, 
which  is  plentiful  here  in  the  Sunny  South." 

Market  poultry  experts  generally  agree  that  the  most  profit- 
able way  of  conducting  the  business  is  to  combine  egg  farming  with 
broiler  raising.  In  this  way  a  regular  income  can  be  maintained  the 
entire  year.  But  just  how  the  combination  should  be  conducted  all 
do  not  agree. 

Some  say,  make  egg  farming  the  prime  object,  and  only  hatch 
broilers  when  there  is  no  sale  for  eggs.  We  cannot  exactly  under- 
stand that  logic,  as  there  is  constantly,  every  day  in  the  year,  a  call 
for  this  article,  and  the  supply  does  not  equal  the  demand.  It  must 
be  that  the  writer  has  reference  to  the  retail  trade. 

In  some  sections  of  the  country  eggs  take  a  decided  drop  as 
soon  as  spring  opens,  while  in  other  sections  the  prices  remain  good 
until  summer.  Where  contracts  are  made  at  a  certain  figure  for 
the  entire  year,  of  course  it  becomes  another  matter. 

To  our  liking,  we  should  say,  sell  eggs  as  long  as  prices  are 
good,  and  turn  them  into  broilers  when  the  price  declines.  We 
should  sell  them  so  long  as  the  retail  figure  did  not  get  below  twenty 
cents  a  dozen,  and  begin  incubation  when  that  price  was  reached. 
We  believe  that  it  will  pay  better  to  turn  eggs  into  carcasses  than 
to  sell  at  less  than  twenty  cents  a  dozen. 

Some  writers  claim  that  to  produce  an  egg  costs  one  cent ;  this 
would  make  their  cost  twelve  cents  a  dozen,  and  anything  over  that 
would  be  clear  profit.  They  will  sell  eggs  so  long  as  they  can  get 
eighteen  cents,  or  over  that ;  at  eighteen  cents  they  have  fifty  per 
cent,  profit,  and  they  are  content  with  that. 

Supposing  that  a  dozen  eggs  cost  twelve  cents,  and  out  of  that 
dozen  only  four  chicks  were  raised  up  to  a  marketable  weight,  and 
the  total  cost  including  price  of  eggs  would  be  one  dollar  for  those 
four  broilers,  and  they  brought  one  dollar  a  pair,  the  usual  price  in 
the  New  York  market,  there  would  be  an  even  dollar  profit.  Of 
course  in  some  sections  of  the  country  broilers  would  not  bring  one 
dollar  a  pair ;  but  then  generally  in  such  localities  feed  is  cheaper, 
which  would  about  equalize  it,  and  besides  we  have  given  a  very 
low  percentage  of  hatch  and  rearing. 

There  is  money  in  the  broiler  business,  but  it  is  a  branch  that 
must  be  entered  carefully,  managed  diligently  and  perfectly  under- 
stood, if  success  is  to  result.  No  amateur  should  start  this  branch 
on  a  large  scale.  He  should  begin  at  the  very  bottom  of  the  ladder 
and  carefully  climb  up.    There  is  so  much  to  know:  First,  how  to 


20  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

run  the  incubators  so  that  they  will  require  less  responsibility  and 
do  best  work;  second,  how  to  brood  the  chicks  so  they  will  not  be- 
come chilled  and  die  from  bowel  troubles ;  third,  how  to  feed  so  that 
they  will  attain  the  desired  weight  without  being  subject  to  leg 
weakness  and  other  troubles.  All  these  matters  must  be  carefully 
studied  and  watched.  There  is  a  big  responsibility  and  the  work 
requires  "eternal  vigilance." 

Egg  farming  is  the  easiest  branch  to  follow.  Start  with  that 
and  let  the  broiler  department  be  an  adjunct. 

James  Rankin  believes  there  is  more  money  in  raising  roasting 
fowls  than  broilers.  Some  others  prefer  capons ;  but  we  are  in- 
clined to  think  that  the  latter  branch  never  will  make  any  headway 
in  this  country.  There  is  not  enough  demand  for  the  capon  carcass 
to  make  it  an  object. 

Squab  culture,  properly  speaking,  comes  under  the  head  of 
market  poultry,  and  quite  a  number  of  market  farms  are  adding  the 
work  to  their  line. 

There  is  money  in  raising  ducklings  for  market,  but  it  is  a 
branch  that  requires  more  real  hard  work  than  any  other.  On  Long 
Island,  up  in  Massachusetts,  in  New  York,  in  Pennsylvania,  and  in 
other  parts  of  the  country,  quite  a  business  is  being  established  in 
this  line ;  and  on  many  duck  farms  is  made  the  combination  of  hen- 
egg  production  for  market. 

Turkey  rearing  is  profitable,  but  a  good  range  is  necessary ;  so 
with  goose  farming.  On  this  account  we  think  these  fowls  are 
neglected  on  many  farms. 

On  farms  where  fancy  fowls  are  reared  and  eggs  sold  for  hatch- 
ing, it  is  not  always  advisable  to  sell  pure-bred  eggs  in  market  for 
table  purposes,  as  they  do  not  always  reach  that  end.  So  these  fan- 
ciers add  broiler  or  roaster  raising  as  an  adjunct;  the  birds  being 
killed  and  dressed  before  going  to  market,  there  can  be  no  chance 
of  falling  into  the  hands  of  undeserving  parties  who  would  use  them 
for  breeding  purposes. 

There  was  a  time  when  the  fancier  hated  the  marketman  as 
much  as  one  rival  in  business  could  despise  the  other;  but  after 
they  became  acquainted,  after  they  found  out  that  neither  could  do 
without  the  other,  they  combined,  and  to-day  there  are  more  fancy 
farms  with  market  additions  than  farms  on  which  the  fancy  alone 
is  followed. 

It  was  a  good  change.  After  all,  the  only  purpose  for  which 
poultry  was  created  was  for  food.  Fine  feathers  and  high  scores 
may  attract  the  eye  of  those  who  love  the  beautiful ;  but  if  this 
beauty  is  gained  at  the  sacrifice  of  the  utility  qualities,  it  is  only  a 
matter  of  time  before  the  breeds  will  drop  down  and  out.  Take,  for 
instance,  the  once  famous  Black  Spanish  fowl.  What  more  noble 
bird  could  have  been  created?  What  breed  can  give  us  the  sized 
eggs  for  which  they  were  noted  ?  Where  are  they  to-day?  A  foolish 
standard  called  for  a  large  white  face,  the  larger  the  better,  and 
to-day  the  Black  Spanish  is  way  in  the  background;  and  we  say 
it  is  a  most  unfortunate  affair.     No  breed  ever  made  such  a  happy 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


21 


hit  as  did  the  Black  Minorca,  when  it  stepped  in  right  at  the  time 
the  Spanish  were  going  backwards.  A  call  for  a  huge  crest  likewise 
injured  the  once  popular  Polish  fowl. 

Now,  these  remarks  are  not  made  to  stir  up  a  controversy,  but 
are  honestly  given  by  one  who  has  made  poultry  culture  a  study, 
and  who  devotes  his  entire  time  to  the  cause.  We  believe  in  poultry 
revenue,  and  the  only  way  to  get  it  is  to  come  down  to  common- 
sense  business  principles  and  methods. 

The  growing  of  small  broilers,  or  squab  broilers,  as  they  are 
more  familiarly  known,  is  an  industry  that  started  out  with  bright 
prospects,  but  the  sudden  boom  in  squab  pigeons  seemed  to  cripple 


Plate  4— CHICK— Fifteenth  Day  I  io  1  ation. 


it  considerably.  Still  there  is  room  for  the  enterprise,  and  quite  a 
number  of  farms  are  making  a  specialty  of  it.  Following  is 
a  very  complete  account  of  the  methods  pursued  in  this  branch. 
They  are  given  by  the  superintendent  of  the  Owls  Nest  Farm,  Fram- 
ingham,  Mass.,  and  originally  published  in  the  "American  Agricul- 
turist." The  specialty  is  the  growing  of  small  broilers,  which 
are  sold  at  a  weight  of  about  three-fourths  pound  dressed.  Chickens 
of  this  size  are  from  five  to  eight  weeks  old,  smaller  than  pigeons. 

Owls  Nest  Farm  has  been  run  for  three  or  four  years  and  has 
built  up  a  large  trade  of  the  above  description  ;  285  of  these  small 
broilers  were  sold  from  January  1  to  January  20,  mostly  to  clubs 
and  high-class  private  trade  in  Boston.  This  branch  of  the  business 
is  continued  the  year  round,  although  prices  grow  lower  in  the  sum- 
mer and  fall.     Incubators  are  started  the  last  third  of  January,  and 


22  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

from  8,000  to  10,000  chickens  are  hatched  out  during  the  year.  The 
breeds  used  for  broilers  are  Wyandottes  and  Plymouth  Rocks.  Said 
Superintendent  Woodland:  "Even  for  light  weight  broilers  such  as 
we  produce,  the  small  breeds  like  the  Leghorns  are  not  satisfactory. 
They  need  to  be  two  weeks  older  than  the  Plymouths  to  give  the 
same  weight. 

"The  chickens  are  not  fed  for  the  first  day  after  hatching.  Their 
first  food  consists  of  broken  crackers  softened  in  water,  cooked 
mush  and  bird  seeds.  They  are  fed  very  often  at  first,  four  or  five 
times  or  oftener,  each  day.  As  soon  as  they  get  well  started  their 
main  soft  ration  is  a  mixture  of  corn  meal  and  middlings,  half  and 
half,  which  is  made  early  in  the  morning  and  allowed  to  stand  until 
about  nine  o'clock  and  fed  warm.  The  first  feed,  fed  very  early  in 
the  morning,  is  hard  grain.  Cracked  corn,  cracked  wheat  or  cracked 
oats  are  fed  at  noon  and  at  night.  They  get  one  quart  of  meat  scraps 
in  the  mash  for  each  2,000  chickens.  For  green  food  they  have  cab- 
bages to  peck  at,  and  clover  hay  steamed.  Mica  grit,  charcoal  and 
water  are  kept  constantly  by  them. 

"They  are  kept  warm  by  hot  water  pipes  about  six  inches  from 
the  floor  of  the  pen.  Sand  is  filled  in  under  the  pipes  to  varying 
heights,  according  to  the  size  of  the  chickens.  The  end  of  the  pipes 
nearest  the  broiler  are  warmest  and  the  youngest  chickens  are  kept 
there.  The  great  point  in  raising  healthy  winter  chicks  is  to  keep 
them  from  scratching. 

"The  grain  and  bird  seed  is  always  fed  in  sand  or  litter  in  order 
to  make  the  chickens  work  for  it.  All  our  chicks  arc  raised  by  in- 
cubators and  brooders,  and  by  comparison  with  hens  which  are 
used  some  years  we  find  that  we  can  hatch  and  raise  25  per  cent, 
more  chicks  by  using  incubators  and  brooders. 

"In  finishing  off  the  chickens  for  market,  something  depends 
upon  our  orders.  When  a  lot  of  chickens  are  needed  in  a  hurry  two 
or  three  weeks  hence,  they  are  put  in  a  fattening  pen  and  fed  all 
they  will  stand.  Giving  as  great  a  variety  of  food  as  possible  in 
feeding  them.  Just  before' they  get  all  they  want  we  takes  the  dishes 
away,  leaving  them  a  little  hungry.  Then  the  next  feeding  time 
they  will  be  looking  for  more.  They  could  not  stand  this  high 
feeding  process  very  long  at  a  time,  but  when  they  are  to  go  to 
market  in  two  or  three  weeks,  they  can  be  quickest  finished  off  in 
this  manner.  Chickens  which  are  to  be  kept  a  longer  time  must  be 
fed  less,  kept  hungry  all  the  time,  so  that  they  are  ready  to  fly  out 
of  the  pen  when  the  man  comes  around  with  the  feed.  They  must 
be  kept  scratching.  The  best  we  can  do,  we  lose  an  average  of 
three  or  four  a  day  in  winter." 

When  the  chickens  are  wanted  for  market  they  are  carried  in 
baskets  to  the  killing  house,  where  they  are  dispatched  by  stabbing 
the  back  of  their  mouth  with  a  lancet.  The  head  is  not  removed. 
They  are  not  fed  for  twenty-four  hours  before  killing  and  the  en- 
trails are  not  removed.  They  are  dry  picked  and  packed  in  pairs  in 
pasteboard  boxes  made  to  fit.  There  is  an  ice  box  for  cooling  the 
dressed  poultry  in  summer. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  23 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Artificial  Methods,  and  Hints  That  Will  Prove  Valuable  in  Running 
Any  Incubator  or  Brooder. 

"Be  at  your  post!"  is  a  command  that  must  be  strictly  obeyed, 
for  in  operating  incubators  especially,  it  is  a  mistake  to  place  too 
much  reliance  on  their  automatic  appliances.  Some  machines  re- 
quire more  attention  than  others,  but  all  must  be  regularly  looked 
after,  since  it  is  impossible  to  install  brains  into  the  wooden  hen. 

So  much  has  been  said  and  written  upon  this  subject,  that  we 
will  but  briefly  touch  upon  the  different  points  to  be  considered.  "A 
hint  to  the  wise  will  be  sufficient."  We  jot  them  down  as  they  come 
to  us: 

Never  sprinkle  the  eggs  while  in  the  incubator.  That  was  one 
of  the  earliest  theories  that  the  experts  exploded. 

Always  fill  the  lamps  in  the  evening.  This  will  make  a  stronger 
blaze  and  more  surely  carry  the  heat  during  the  night. 

Never  use  oil  less  than  150  degrees  test.  Cheap  oil  is  danger- 
ous oil. 

It  is  a  good  policy  to  begin  each  hatch  with  a  new  wick. 

The  proper  temperature  for  hatching  is  103  degrees  for  an 
average.  A  few  degrees  above  or  below  that  mark  will  not  do  any 
serious  damage. 

A  dry  cellar  is  the  very  best  place  for  running  an  incubator. 

Never  trim  a  wick;  scrape  off  the  charred  part  with  a  burnt 
match,  or  a  piece  of  stick. 

Cooling  the  eggs  makes  strong  chicks. 

The  incubator  room  must  be  ventilated,  but  there  should  be 
no  draughts. 

Never  allow  the  lamp  to  become  empty. 

Never  have  the  incubator  standing  near  a  window. 

A  good  time  to  do  the  first  testing  of  your  eggs,  is  at  the  end 
of  the  first  week. 

No  moisture  is  required  in  the  incubator  if  the  air  is  humid. 

In  testing  a  new  machine,  be  sure  to  closely  follow  the  instruc- 
tions as  given  by  the  manufacturer. 

Never  turn  nor  cool  the  eggs  after  they  begin  pipping. 

Begin  turning  the  eggs  after  the  fourth  day;  turn  them  night 
and  morning. 

Keep  the  burner  free  from  dirt,  and  see  that  the  little  sieve  on 
the  burner  is  not  closed  up,  so  as  to  have  a  free  circulation  of  air. 


24  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

If  the  temperature  gets  too  high,  the  hatch  will  come  off  before 
it  is  due ;  and  if  too  low,  the  hatch  wifr  be  delayed  several  days. 
Either  extreme  is  detrimental  to  the  strenjXh  of  the  chicks. 

Never  add  eggs  to  the  incubator  after  'you  have  started  the 
hatch. 

Be  careful  that  the  flame  of  the  lamp  is  not  turned  up  so  high 
that  it  will  smoke.  In  this  way  soot  is  gathered  and  very  often  the 
machine  is  set  on  fire. 

Make  a  study  of  the  air  cells,  and  govern  the  treatment  accord- 
ing to  their  size. 

In  placing  the  eggs  in  the  incubator,  see  that  the  large  eggs  are 
all  pointing  the  same  way  in  the  trays. 

Sometimes  a  delayed  hatch  can  be  hastened  by  placing  sponges, 
dipped  in  boiling  water,  in  the  machine. 

After  the  fourth  day  the  eggs  can  be  cooled,  doing  so  only  a 
little  at  first,  and  longer  as  the  hatch  progresses. 

If  the  air  cell  of  the  egg  is  very  large,  add  moisture,  and  if  very 
small,  take  away  what  water  you  have  in  the  pans. 

After  the  eighteenth  day,  do  not  turn  nor  cool  the  hens'  eggs. 

The  air  cell  on  the  fifth  day  should  measure  about  a  quarter  of 
an  inch ;  tenth  day,  half  an  inch  ;  fifteenth  day,  five-eighths  inch  ; 
nineteenth  day,  three-quarters  inch.  Take  measurement  from  mid- 
dle of  large  end. 

Chilled  eggs  will  not  hatch. 

Be  sure  that  your  thermometer  is  correct.  Nothing  will  do  as 
deadly  work  as  an  inaccurate  thermometer. 

Likewise  see  that  the  regulator  really  regulates.  We  have 
seen  quite  a  number  of  regulators  that  needed  regulating  very  badly. 

"Eternal  vigilance"  should  be  the  watchword.  There  are  so 
many  little  details  in  this  work,  that  unless  you  give  it  the  closest 
attention  you  will  have  trouble  which  is  not  so  readily  adjusted. 
The  successful  broiler  raisers  of  to-day  are  those  who  "stick  to  the 
ship"  from  beginning  to  end. 

We  have  little  or  no  faith  in  hygrometers  or  moisture  gauges. 

After  each  hatch,  see  that  the  incubator  is  thoroughly  cleaned 
and  fumigated. 

To  get  the  correct  temperature  of  the  egg  chamber,  see  that 
the  bulb  of  the  thermometer  rests  upon  a  strong  fertile  egg. 

While  you  are  cooling  or  turning  the  eggs,  keep  the  incubator 
doors  closed.  Do  not  try  to  hatch  duck  eggs  and  hen  eggs  in  the 
same  machine  at  the  same  time.  The  conditions  for  each  are  dif- 
ferent. Neither  place  eggs  of  different  varieties  in  the  machine  at 
the  same  time.  A  mixture  of  white  and  brown  shelled  eggs  will 
give  unsatisfactory  hatches,  for  the  reason  that  the  brown  shelled 
egg  is  a  much  harder  shell  and  requires  different  treatment  than 
does  a  white  shelled  one. 

Before  you  start  the  incubators  in  the  house  cellar,  consult  your 
insurance  policy.  Ten  chances  to  one,  there  is  a  prohibitory  clause 
in  it  which  would  cost  you  your  insurance. 

Keep  a  record  from  the  time  you  start  the  incubator  until  the 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  25 

hatch  is  completed,  and  note  all  changes  and  experiences.  This 
will  be  furnishing  you  with  valuable  information  for  subsequent 
hatches. 

Incubators  can  be  successful  in  a  room  above  ground  providing 
the  temperature  of  the  room  does  not  readily  change. 

Fifty  per  cent,  is  the  average  hatch ;  and  an  average  of  fifty 
per  cent,  of  chicks  hatched  are  marketed. 

In  cooling  eggs,  place  a  thermometer  on  them  after  they  have 
been  turned,  and  when  85  degrees  are  reached,  return  the  tray  to 
the  machine. 

It  is  not  always  the  fault  of  the  incubator  when  the  hatch  is 
poor.  Sometimes  the  eggs  are  to  blame,  but  generally  "the  man 
behind  the  incubator"  is  at  the  bottom  of  the  trouble. 

Bear  in  mind  that  the  dryer  the  air,  the  more  rapid  is  evapora- 
tion. 

Never  have  the  flame  ot  the  lamp  higher  than  is  strictly  neces- 
sary. 

The  eggs  themselves  throw  off  very  little  heat  for  the  first  two 
weeks. 

A  high  temperature  during  the  early  part  of  the  hatch  is  apt  to 
prove  fatal.  A  temperature  of  no  degrees  on  the  eleventh  day  will 
not  necessarily  kill  the  hatch,  unless  it  is  allowed  to  continue  too 
long. 

Rankin  says  that  if  no  more  water  surface  is  exposed  in  warm 
weather  than  in  cold,  not  more  than  one-half  the  moisture  is  se- 
cured. 

After  removing  the  infertile  eggs  from  the  machine,  spread  out 
the  fertile  ones  so  that  they  occupy  about  the  same  relative  position 
to  one  another. 

The  greatest  excess  of  heat  for  a  short  period,  says  Cyphers, 
can  probably  be  withstood,  after  the  sixteenth  day,  when  the 
growth  of  the  allantois  is  completed. 

C.  E.  Chapman,  in  "Rural  New-Yorker,"  says  enough  extra 
eggs  can  be  put  on  the  trays  to  fill  out  the  trays  after  the  infertile 
ones  are  removed.  He  marked  them  "extras,"  and  found  that  plac- 
ing them  on  top  of  the  others  for  five  days  did  no  injury.  This  gives 
the  full  capacity  for  the  whole  hatch.  If  that  method  will  hold  good, 
it  is  valuable,  but  we  very  much  doubt  it.  However,  it  may  be 
worthy  a  trial  by  one  of  an  experimental  turn. 

A.  J.  Hallock  says  it  will  not  pay  to  overcharge  the  machine, 
as  recommended  by  Mr.  Chapman,  as  the  top  eggs  will  be  a  degree 
or  more  hotter  than  the  lower  ones,  which  will  be  detrimental  to 
the  hatch. 

Cyphers,  in  his  book  on  incubation,  says  he  finds  the  temper- 
ature of  the  eggs  will  average  up,  at  the  end  of  the  first  day  of  in- 
cubation, at  about  973/  degrees ;  at  the  end  of  the  second  day,  98*4 
degrees.;  and  from  this  time  on  will  gain  uniformly  one-fourth  de- 
gree a  day  until  the  end  of  the  eleventh  day,  having  a  temperature 
at  that  time  of  about  100J/2  degrees.    During  the  next  two  days  the 


26  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

temperature  rises  to  101^  degrees  or  102  degrees,  and  remains  more 
or  less  stationary  at  102  degrees  until  the  end  of  incubation. 

When  turning  the  eggs  by  the  trayful,  says  Prof.  Wheeler,  turn 
slowly  and  not  by  a  quick  whirl. 

"My  only  guide  in  regulating  moisture  is  to  feel  the  air  when  I 
open  the  incubator  doors,"  says  James  E.  Rice.  "It  should  have  a 
warm,  humid  touch  and  a  live  smell." 

A  uniform  heat,  and  one  that  will  not  bring  out  the  chicks 
ahead  of  time,  is  the  most  important.    William  H.  Truslow  thinks 

102  degrees  on  a  reliable  thermometer  will  give  better  results  than 

103  degrees. 

Prof.  William  P.  Wheeler  says  that  unless  the  eggs  are  graded 
more  evenly  than  seems  possible  in  general  practice,  a  slight  per- 
centage of  loss  of  the  fertile  eggs  is  unavoidable  where  a  large  num- 
ber of  eggs  are  hatched  in  one  machine. 

B.  Holmes  says  weak  germs  in  an  egg  from  a  hen  out  of  con- 
dition, account  for  a  part  of  the  deaths  in  the  shell.  A  hen  may  be 
out  of  condition  one  day  and  better  the  next ;  what  affects  one  or 
more  hens  in  a  pen,  may  not  affect  all  alike;  therefore,  the  eggs 
from  the  same  pen  may  vary  in  vigor  from  day  to  day,  or  week  to 
week. 

William  H.  Truslow  says  he  fears  that  none  of  the  manufac- 
turers of  incubators  can,  as  yet,  held  a  candle  anywhere  near  a  good 
sitting  hen.  But  there  are  so  many  poor  hens  that  will  do  every- 
thing but  sit  properly,  that  1,000  eggs  set  in  machines,  even  though 
they  do  not  work  quite  satisfactorily,  will  usually  give  as  many 
chicks  as  1,000  eggs  under  hens,  and  a  machine  will  sit  when  you 
can  find  no  hens. 

Never  remove  the  chicks  from  the  incubator  at  night — wait  un- 
til the  next  morning. 

James  Rankin  says  he  has  kept  eggs  six  weeks  (for  an  experi- 
ment) and  hatched  about  fifty  per  cent.  It,  however,  is  a  poor  pol- 
icy to  keep  eggs  longer  than  one  week  for  incubation ;  the  fresher 
they  are  the  better  the  hatch  and  the  stronger  the  chicks. 

In  running  the  machine  in  a  cool  room,  the  moist  air  in  the  in- 
cubator will  condense  on  the  glass  doors. 

James  H.  Seeley  says  eggs  for  hatching  should  be  kept  in  a  dry 
place  at  a  temperature  of  50  or  60  degrees. 

If  possible,  eggs  of  the  same  age  should  be  set  in  each  ma- 
chine, as  old  eggs  need  more  moisture,  on  account  of  the  air  cell 
being  larger. 

Never  expose  the  incubator  to  sunlight. 

Pure  air  is  necessary  in  the  incubator  room. 

Lamp  trips  are  good  so  long  as  they  work  freely,  but  they  are 
very  apt  to  get  out  of  order. 

Always  run  the  incubator  several  days  before  putting  in  the 
eggs.    Be  sure  that  every  part  of  it  is  working  rightly. 

Never  try  to  run  the  incubator  in  a  room  that  is  heated  up  dur- 
ing the  day,  and  allowed  to  cool  off  at  night. 

The  "Reliable  Poultry  Journal"  advises,  for  washing  out  the 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  2J 

egg  chamber,  trays  and  turning  rack,  if  they  are  soiled  or  musty,  to 
use  hot  water,  into  which  a  liberal  amount  of  baking  soda  has  been 
mixed. 

The  same  journal  gives  this  method  for  keeping  eggs  for  hatch- 
ing: Pack  the  eggs  in  boxes  containing  oats,  bran  or  dry  sawdust, 
filling  the  box  full  and  screwing  on  the  cover.  You  can  now  turn 
the  eggs  by  simply  turning  the  box  half  way  over.  The  common 
way  is  to  stand  the  eggs  on  end  when  placing  them ;  it  does  not  make 
any  difference  which  end. 

J.  L.  Campbell  gives  this  method  for  determining  the  moisture 
in  eggs.  Try  them  in  warm  water  at  the  end  of  two  weeks.  If  they 
sink  they  are  too  moist.  If  they  just  float  they  are  a  little  too  moist. 
If  they  float  high  they  are  too  dry;  but  if  they  float  with  a  space 
which  could  be  covered  with  a  silver  twenty-five  cent  piece,  they 
are  about  right.  This  will  be  the  average  only,  as  some  will  be 
less  and  some  a  little  more.  Less  is  better  than  more.  This  is  a 
reliable  test  in  all  cases,  and  one  can  prove  it  by  trying  it  long 
enough  and  often  enough.  If  the  eggs  float  as  stated,  and  a  poor 
hatch  results,  the  trouble  must  be  looked  for  elsewhere.  It  will 
usually  be  found  in  the  temperature. 

Fasten  a  card  to  each  incubator,  stating  when  the  hatch  was 
started,  when  the  tests  were  made,  number  of  infertile  eggs,  num- 
ber of  chicks  hatched,  number  dead  in  the  shell,  and  a  general  de- 
scription of  the  conduct  of  the  machine  during  the  entire  three 
weeks. 

In  selecting  eggs  for  hatching,  do  not  use  those  undersized, 
neither  extra  large  ones.  As  a  rule  double-yolked  eggs  will  not 
hatch,  while  the  extra  small  ones  will  give  weak,  puny  chicks,  if 
any.  A  rough-shelled  or  a  thin-shelled  egg  should  also  be  rejected, 
iiggs  having  a  bad  shape,  or  which  have  ridges  around  them,  are 
very  unreliable. 

It  is  a  good  plan  to  shift  the  trays  each  day  from  one  section 
of  the  machine  to  the  other. 

Have  the  regulator  adjusted  at  one  hundred  degrees  before  put- 
ting in  the  eggs. 

A  chick  too  weak  to  free  itself  from  the  shell,  will  be  too  weak 
to  amount  to  anything  afterwards.    Better  leave  it  alone. 

If  the  temperature  of  the  machine  runs  down  while  the  eggs 
are  hatching,  the  chicks  are  apt  to  stick  fast  to  the  shell. 

A.  F.  Cooper  says  the  four  points  of  success  with  incubators 
are,  first,  even  temperature  of  103  degrees;  second,  fresh  air;  third, 
air-cell  one-fourth  to  one-fifth  the  contents  of  the  shell ;  fourth, 
cooling. 

H.  S.  Thompson,  in  "Farm-Poultry,"  gives  this  pointer :  Cut 
two  narrow  cardboard  strips  for  each  of  your  egg  trays.  Write  or 
print  "Night"  on  one,  and  "Morning"  on  the  other.  Tack  each  one 
to  the  sides  of  the  tray  that  show  through  the  glass  door.  When 
turning  your  eggs  see  that  the  trays  are  shifted  around  so  that  the 
sign  "Night"  shows  at  night,  and  "Morning"  in  the  morning.  This 
will  insure  the  even  application  of  heat,  which  is  so  important. 


28  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

It  is  difficult  to  dry  down  the  eggs  in  a  damp  cellar. 

Moisture  pans  in  incubators  should  be  above  the  eggs. 

S.  C.  Stubbs  says  he  has  found  that  it  requires  a  higher  average 
temperature,  by  about  one-half  a  degree,  when  the  eggs  are  cooled 
than  when  they  are  not. 

After  the  incubating  season  is  over,  place  the  burners  in  hot 
water,  to  which  add  about  a  tablespoonful  of  washing  soda,  and  boil 
for  several  hours.  This  will  thoroughly  clean  them  of  dirt  and 
make  them  safer  for  another  season. 

In  selecting  an  incubator,  says  W.  D.  Rudd,  it  is  of  vital  im- 
portance that  a  first-class  one  be  chosen ;  one  that  will  not  only 
hatch  well,  but  hatch  strong,  healthy,  vigorous  chickens,  for  a 
chicken  not  well  hatched  had  better  remain  in  the  shell.  To  start 
with  a  poor  incubator  at  the  opening  of  the  season,  is  like  planting 
a  field  with  worthless  seed,  and  waiting  the  entire  summer  for  them 
to  sprout.  A  complete  flat  failure  is  as  certain  in  one  case  as  the 
other. 

Campbell  prefers  an  incubator  room  above  ground. 

An  unincubated  egg  is  a  very  poor  conductor  of  heat.  The 
shell,  however,  is  one  of  the  very  best  conductors,  and  to  it  the  more 
uniform  heating  of  the  egg  is  at  first  due.  In  illustration,  Mr.  Cy- 
phers says,  if  a  piece  of  muslin  be  smoothly  wrapped  around  an 
egg,  it  may  be  held  in  the  flame  of  a  lamp,  until  the  whole  egg  is 
hardened,  without  the  muslin  burning,  so  rapidly  does  the  shell  con- 
duct the  heat  away. 

Do  not  be  too  hasty  in  removing  the  chicks  from  the  incubator. 
It  will  be  all  the  better  to  allow  them  to  remain  for  twenty-four 
hours,  so  that  they  will  be  fully  dried. 

In  closing  the  incubator  door,  see  that  the  jar  has  not  put  out 
the  lamp  flame. 

Don't  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  there  is  enough  moisture  in 
an  egg  to  hatch  it.  Therefore,  the  art  of  properly  applying  venti- 
lation is  of  more  importance  than  the  moisture  question. 

Eggs  will  stand  a  greater  variation  in  temperature  the  last  week 
of  the  hatch  titan  they  will  the  first. 

To  test  thermometers,  place  them  in  water,  warmed  to  102  de- 
grees, alongside  a  reliable  physician's  thermometer.  Stir  the  water 
continually  while  testing. 

In  airing  eggs,  Mr.  Stevenson  says,  if  the  room  is  40  to  50  de- 
grees, 10  to  15  minutes  is  long  enough;  while  if  70  to  80  degrees, 
20  to  30  minutes  is  none  too  long. 

In  a  room  of  60  degrees  temperature,  eggs  will  lose  one  degree 
in  two  minutes ;  in  40  degrees,  about  one  degree  in  one  minute. 

If  we  run  the  ventilators  one-third  open  in  a  room  with  a  tem- 
perature of  40  degrees,  they  should  be  all  the  way  open  if  the  room 
should  be  80  degrees.  Always  the  warmer  the  room,  the  more  ven- 
tilation should  be  given.  .The  ventilation  must,  also,  be  regulated 
according  to  the  atmosphere.  Dry  climates  require  much  less  ven- 
tilation than  where  the  air  is  laden  with  moisture.  The  amount 
can  be  determined  only  by  careful  observation.     If  the  chicks  come 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  29 

out  weak,  and  appear  sticky,  not  drying  off  nicely,  there  has  not 
been  enough  ventilation. 

"During  the  last  week,  an  egg  containing  a  living  chick,  will 
be  one  to  two  degrees  warmer  than  an  infertile  egg  directly  beside 
it,"  says  Mr.  Stevenson.  "Thus  if  the  bulb  were  resting  continually 
on  an  infertile  or  dead  egg,  we  would  be  in  the  same  fix  as  though 
the  thermometer  registered  too  low,  and  if  changed  from  fertile  to 
infertile,  as  would  be  the  case  were  they  not  tested,  we  would  be 
continually  adjusting  the  regulator,  and  wondering  why  the  ma- 
chine does  not  regulate  itself  more  closely.  On  the  whole,  I  prefer 
having  the  thermometer  hung  just  above  the  eggs ;  in  this  way,  we 
get  the  temperature  of  the  egg  chamber,  and  all  eggs  are  subject  to 
the  same  degree  of  heat,  the  same  as  when  under  a  hen." 

In  answering  to  the  theory  that  cooling  eggs  is  detrimental  to 
the  hatch,  Mr.  Stevenson,  in  "Rural  New-Yorker,"  very  wisely  says  : 
If  the  change  from  103  degrees  to  60  degrees  or  less  for  the  few 
minutes  required  for  turning,  is  too  great,  what  about  the  sitting 
hen  that  comes  off  occasionally  for  food  and  water,  even  though  the 
temperature  is  20  degrees  or  less?  She  will  stay  off  in  zero  weather 
much  longer  than  the  time  required  to  turn  the  eggs  from  an  in- 
cubator. In  my  opinion,  the  change,  if  not  long  enough  to  chill  the 
eggs,  will  give  stronger  chicks  than  the  continually  closed  machine 
or  the  hen  that  sits  more  closely.  It  is  much  easier  to  get  the  de- 
sired air-space  in  the  eggs  when  the  incubator  room  is  at  50  de- 
grees, than  when  at  80  degrees,  and  I  find  it  much  easier  to  get  out 
good  hatches  of  strong  chicks  in  the  early  spring  than  in  hot 
weather. 

By  far  more  chicks  never  see  daylight,  or  pass  to  rest  quickly 
after  hatching,  on  account  of  too  much  moisture  than  not  enough, 
and  unless  sure  the  make  of  incubator  and  surrounding  conditions 
require  it,  one  should  not  use  any  moisture,  or  at  least,  not  until 
the  last  few  days  of  the  hatch.  Too  much  moisture  will  not  only 
cause  many  chicks  to  die  in  the  shell  by  causing  an  abnormal 
growth  (the  chick  swelling  so  as  to  completely  fill  the  shell,  making 
it  unable  to  turn  and  break  its  way  out),  but  many  of  those  that 
do  hatch  will  not  be  much  expense  for  feed,  as  they  will  not  stay 
long.  Some  incubators  will  require  moisture  in  the  same  room 
where  others  will  do  much  better  without  any  at  all.  There  are  a 
few  machines  that  require  the  moisture  pans  to  be  filled  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  hatch  and  kept  full,  owing  to  their  having  both  top 
and  bottom  ventilation,  making  a  direct  current  of  air  passing 
through  the  egg  chamber  constantly.  The  best  way  to  determine 
the  amount  of  moisture  required  is  to  examine  the  eggs  occasionally 
with  an  egg  tester,  and  note  how  the  air  space  is  growing;  unless 
it  appear  as  though  it  will  occupy  more  than  one-third  the  shell  by 
the  end  of  the  hatch,  no  moisture  should  be  supplied.  It  is  a  good 
plan  to  set  a  hen  at  the  same  time  one  starts  the  incubator,  and  com- 
pare the  eggs  occasionally. 

Cripples  are  generally  caused  by  being  too  long  imprisoned  in 
the  shell. 


3<D  \Ioncy    in    Broilers    and  .Squabs. 

When  eggs  are  overheated  in  the  start,  the  chicks  are  generally- 
found  dead  in  the  shell  when  the  hatch  is  due. 

J.  L.  Campbell,  the  incubator  expert,  says :  "Although  I  have 
been  raising  chickens  all  my  life,  I  learn  something  new  every  year.': 

We  do  not  believe  that  it  is  possible  for  any  incubator  to  make 
a  hatch,  regardless  of  conditions,  without  some  moisture.  We  know- 
that  under  certain  conditions  it  can  be  done,  but  not  always. 

Turning  eggs  during  incubation  prevents  the  blood  vessels 
growing  fast  to  the  shell. 

When  chicks  form  near  the  small  end  of  the  egg  they  are  apt  to. 
die  in  the  shell. 

Always  fill  the  incubator  with  eggs,  when  starting;  a  half-full- 
machine  cannot  do  as  satisfactory  work  on  account  of  the  amount 
of  dead  space. 

The  correct  position  for  eggs  during  incubation  is  on  their 
sides  with  the  large  end  slightly  higher. 

It  is  possible  to  make  a  good  hatch  without  testing  the  eggs,, 
but  such  cases  are  rare  and  accidental. 

Sixty  degrees  will  neither  start  nor  chill  the  germs  in  the  eggs,, 
and  will  keep  them  good  longer  than  any  other  temperature. 

Handle  the  eggs  in  the  incubator  as  little  as  possible.  Sweaty 
and  dirty  hands  stop  the  pores  of  the  eggs,  and  may  also  impart  de- 
lecterious  odors  when  such  eggs  are  returned  to  the  incubator  heat.. 
There  is  not  enough  stress  put  on  the  importance  of  having  strictly- 
clean  hands  when  handling  eggs  in  the  course  of  incubation.  The 
incubation  of  eggs  may  be  stopped  by  what  seems  a  very  insignifi- 
cant cause.    Avoid  handling  as  much  as  possible. 

The  following  pointers  are  taken  from  an  extended  experience,, 
and  will  be  found  useful : 

If  you  notice  the  chicks  crowding,  you  will  know  that  they  are- 
suffering  for  more  heat  in  the  brooder. 

Where  less  than  a  thousand  chicks  are  hatched  a  season,  reliable- 
sectional  brooders  are  better  and  more  economical  than  the  pipe 
system. 

Seventy  degrees  is  warm  enough  for  chicks  after  they  are  three 
weeks  old. 

When  the  chicks  scatter  about  the  brooder  at  night,  they  are 
comfortable,  and  all  conditions  are  right. 

Ninety  degrees  is  hot  enough  to  start  the  chicks  in  the  brood- 
ers. 

Cyphers  says  that  chilled  chicks,  kept  in  a  brooder  where  the 
temperature  is  up  to  ioo  degrees,  and  fed  on  bread  and  milk,  gene- 
rally recover. 

Make  note  of  the  number  of  chicks  you  put  in  the  brooder,  and 
have  kept  a  memorandum  of  all  deaths  and,  if  possible,  cause  of 
same. 

Anv  good  incubator  will  hatch  eggs  if  rightly  attended  to,  but 
raising  the  chicks  after  they  are  hatched  is  the  rock  that  shipwrecks 
nine  out  of  ten  incipient  poultrymen,  truthfully  states  F.  H.  Rich- 
ardson, in  ''Northwestern  Horticulturist." 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


3* 


'Never  use  the  full  (advertised)  capacity  of  the  brooder.  No 
more  than  fifty  chicks  should  be  kept  in  any  brooder  at  one  time. 

Too  high  temperature  in  the  brooder  will  cause  the  chicks  to 
"steam,"  resulting  in  loss. 

As  the  lamps  in  an  outdoor  brooder  are  enclosed  in  a  small  box, 
care  must  be  taken  that  the  flame  is  not  too  high,  or  it  may  collect 
soot  and  catch  fire. 

Make  the  chicks  exercise  in  the  brooders. 


Plate  5— CHICK— Eighteenth  Day  Incubation. 


an    outside     run  for    broiler 
five    lineal  feet    of 


Sixteen  feet  is  long  enough  for 
chicks. 

Cooper  says  the  usual  rate  of  capacity  is 
brooders  per  one  hundred  chicks. 

Chicks  in  brooders  during  the  summer  need  no  heat,  excepting 
a  moderate  temperature  at  night  for  the  first  week  or  two.  Too 
much  heat  is  fatal. 

W.  H.  Rudd,  in  "Poultry  Monthly,"  says:  "We  want  separate 


32  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

broodeis  and  rooms  and  yards  for  each  fifty  chicks,  and  we  heat 
each  brooder  separately.  We  never  warm  a  brooder  house  except 
by  the  heat  which  incidentally  escapes  from  the  brooders,  nor  would 
we  warm  it  even  to  prevent  every  chicken  from  freezing  to  death, 
for  in  that  event  they  escape  the  troubles  of  life,  while  we  save  the 
expense  of  feeding,  and  can  bury  them  all  in  one  large  grave,  which 
we  prefer  to  having  tnem  die  ten  or  a  dozen  at  a  time,  as  they 
surely  would  from  the  effects  of  a  warmed  brooder  house,  and  in- 
volving the  bother  of  several  small  funerals  instead  of  one  large 
one." 

Editor  Drevenstedt  hits  the  nail  on  the  head  in  this :  "Utilizing 
greenhouses  for  rearing  chickens  is  one  of  those  bright  but  foolish 
inspirations  unfledged  amateurs  are  guilty  of.  The  whole  atmos- 
phere of  the  greenhouse  is  death  to  chickenhood.  Chickens,  all  re- 
ports to  the  contrary,  are  best  raised  under  natural  conditions,  and 
that  means  in  the  open  air,  and  on  the  good  old  sod.  The  reason 
why  some  varieties  of  fowls  are  delicate  is  because  they  have  de- 
scended from  parents  that  have  been  pampered,  coddled  and  nursed 
into  a  state  of  dudish  tenderness.  Virility  in  chickenhood  can  only 
be  obtained  by  following  nature's  laws.  A  chicken  thus  kept  and 
treated  is  as  hardy  as  an  oak,  and  as  tough  as  hickory." 

For  convenience  and  comfort  in  attending  to  them  during  bad 
weather,  place  all  outdoor  brooders  under  sheds. 

Campbell  recommends  carpeting  the  floor  of  the  brooder. 

A  thorough  painting  of  all  the  parts  of  a  brooder  with  gasoline 
will  do  up  the  lice;  the  gasoline  soon  evaporates,  leaving  the  brooder 
nice  and  clean. 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  '33 


CHAPTER  V. 


Artificial  Methods  as  Given  by  Some  of  America's  Greatest  Experts. 

In  1891,  Farm  Journal  published  an  article  by  M.  Sumner 
Perkins,  of  Danvers,  Mass.,  on  hatching-  and  rearing-  chickens  in 
winter  by  artificial  means.  The  article  in  question  was  awarded 
the  prize  of  $25  offered  by  J.  L.  Campbell,  West  Elizabeth,  Pa., 
manufacturer  of  the  Eureka  incubator,  for  the  best  essay  on  the 
aforesaid  subject. 

We  make  the  following  extracts  from  Mr.  Perkin's  article, 
which  are  worthy  of  note : 

"Broody  hens  are  generally  a  very  scarce  article  in  winter  time, 
so  that  the  hatching  of  chickens  in  any  numbers  at  this  season 
must  be  effected  solely  through  the  instrumentality  of  the  incuba- 
tor. Artificial  hatching  certainly  does  away  with  much  labor  and 
annoyance  that  is  generally  attendant  upon  the  pursuence  of  natural 
methods;  and  many  persons  find  much  more  pleasure  and  satisfac- 
tion in  running  a  good  incubator  than  in  attending  to  a  sufficient 
number  of  broody  hens  to  accomplish  a  like  result. 

"As  far  as  the  best  kind  of  an  incubator  to  be  used  is  concerned, 
it  is  a  notable  fact  that  much  more  depends  on  the  operator  than 
on  the  machine.  An  expert,  of  knowledge  and  experience  in  arti- 
ficial hatching,  will  often  be  quite  successful  with  the  crudest  form 
of  an  incubator,  while  the  amateur,  or  ignorant  person,  will  often 
fail  with  the  most  improved.  It  is  true,  however,  that  the  higher 
priced  class  of  machines  are  the  best  and  give  the  most  general 
satisfaction.  It  is  always  poor  economy  to  be  unduly  influenced 
by  cost  in  the  purchase  of  an  incubator. 

"Machines  without  means  of  automatic  regulation  are  sold 
very  cheaply;  and,  most  invariably,  they  are  of  little  value,  for  a 
first-class  incubator,  fully  equipped  in  accordance  with  the  present 
advanced  ideas,  in  reference  to  artificial  incubation,  cannot  be  con- 
structed for  a  nominal  sum.  Good  material  and  skilled  workman- 
ship in  the  construction  of  an  incubator,  together  with  an  efficient 
system  of  self  regulation  of  the  same,  cannot  be  secured  inexpen- 
sively, and  a  hatching  machine  without  a  heat  regulator,  is  like 
a  ship  without  a  rudder.  Disaster  generally  follows  the  use  of  the 
one  as  of  the  other. 

"The  running  of  the  incubator  in  a  small  way  at  first,  merely 
in  the  line  of  an  experiment,  is  often  of  incalculable  value  to  the 
novice,  the  experience  and  knowledge  so  acquired,   promoting    a 


34  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

successful  issue  from  the  very  beginning.  The  best  location  for  an 
incubator  is  afforded  by  a  cellar,  or  apartment  wholly  or  partially 
underground.  Here  a  uniform  temperature  is  preserved,  affected  tc 
a  minimum  degree  by  the  various  climatic  changes.  Here  also  a 
firm  foundation  on  which  to  set  the  machine  is  offered,  and  thus 
any  jarring  of  the  eggs  is  avoided. 

"Means  of  ventilation  of  the  incubator  room  should  always 
exist,  and  excessive  dampness  is  undesirable.  The  incubator  should 
be  run  empty  for  two  or  three  days,  or  long  enough  to  determine 
that  it  is  working  correctly  and  with  precision,  registering  a  tem- 
perature of  from  102  degrees  to  104  degrees  Fahrenheit.  It  is  then 
ready  for  the  reception  of  the  eggs. 

"A  word  right  here  in  regard  to  the  selection  of  the  eggs.  First 
they  must  be  fresh,  and  the  fresher  they  are  the  better.  All  had 
better  be  less  than  a  fortnight  old.  They  should  be  of  good  size 
and  regular  in  shape,  the  shells  smooth,  of  a  proper  thickness  and 
free  from  chalky  formations.  The  superiority  of  large  eggs  for 
hatching  is  apparent.  Large  eggs  have  large  yolks  that  supply 
more  nourishment  and  induce  an  increased  growth  within  the  shell. 
Consequently,  a  plumper  and  stronger  chick  is  hatched,  one  more 
sure  to  live  and  thrive.  The  eggs  in  the  incubator  must  be  regularly 
turned  two  or  three  times  daily.  In  some  machines  this  is  accom- 
plished automatically  by  their  own  operation,  and  thus  any  hand 
labor  in  this  direction  is  uncalled  for.  The  eggs  should  always  be 
tested  and  the  infertile  ones  removed.  The  latter,  if  taken  out  early, 
are  fit  for  culinary  uses,  or  they  may  be  saved  and  boiled  for  chicken 
feed.  The  first  testing  may  be  made  at  the  end  of  the  third  day. 
A  second  one  should  be  made  as  late  as  the  end  of  the  first  week, 
for  if  the  egg  shells  are  dark  colored,  it  is  quite  difficult  to  determine 
the  character  of  the  egg  at  first  testing.  Also  the  germs  of  some 
will  have  died  after  having  started  to  develop,  and  these  will  need 
to  be  removed.  Infertile  eggs  always  have  a  clear,  translucent 
look.  Fertile  eggs  show  the  germ  as  a  clot  of  blood,  with  veins 
radiating  from  it  in  every  direction.  Where  the  germ  has  died,  2 
reddish  suffusion  of  blood  will  be  apparent. 

"The  amount  of  moisture  required  for  the  egg  chamber  of  the 
incubator  can  be  estimated  quite  correctly  after  some  experience, 
by  the  appearance  or  feeling  of  the  egg  shell.  Indeed,  if  the  ma- 
chine is  stationed  in  a  cellar,  as  before  advised,  little  or  no  addi- 
tional moisture  will  be  needed.  We  have  made  good  hatches  under 
such  conditions,  without  the  use  of  any  artificial  moisture  whatever, 
and  have  learned  of  others  being  successful  in  the  same  manner. 

"The  incubator  needs  some  attention  during  hatching.  The 
chickens  as  soon  as  hatched  and  dried  should  be  transferred  from 
the  egg  trays  to  the  nursery,  that  they  may  not  inconvenience  others 
not  yet' out  of  the  shell.  All  pipped  eggs  should  be  placed  with  the 
chipped  side  uppermost,  that  the  chicks  may  have  plenty  of  air,  and 
escape  suffocation.  Empty  shells  often  impede  the  hatching  by 
becoming  attached  to  other  eggs,  and  should  therefore  be  removed 
as  soon  as  present. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  35 

"Artificial  assistance  of  chickens  from  the  shell  is  seldom  neces- 
sary, nor  is  it  generally  advisable,  yet  occasionally  one  will  be 
found  whose  egress  is  hindered  by  an  unnatural  presentation,  undue 
hardening  of  the  covering  membrane,  or  other  adverse  condition. 
In  such  case,  a  little  judicious  aid  is  effective,  and  serves  to  set  the 
prisoner  free.  Extreme  care  must  always  be  exercised  that  no 
hemorrhage  be  excited.  Artificial  incubation  should  always  be 
prosecuted  as  smoothly  as  possible.  It  is  true  that  chickens  are 
sometimes  hatched  under  extreme  variations  of  temperature,  yet. 
it  is  very  doubtful  if  they  ever  make  first-class  fowls ;  while  we 
know  that  many  chickens  are  hatched  every  year,  that,  owing  tc 
some  abuse  (very  possibly  during  incubation),  either  die  young,  or 
at  least,  develope  into  stunted  and  deformed  runts.  Hence  it  is 
very  essential  that  all  natural  conditions  of  incubation  be  fulfilled 
to  the  letter,  every  time. 

"Some  people  seem  to  think  that  when  the  chickens  are 
hatched,  the  chief  business  is  over,  whereas,  in  reality  it  has  just 
begun.  There  are  many  who  have  success  in  hatching,  who  ex- 
perience their  trouble  in  rearing  the  chickens.  Obviously  the  first 
thing  to  be  provided,  especially  in  winter,  is  suitable  quarters.  They 
must  be  warm,  dry,  well  ventilated,  and  admit  plenty  of  sunlight. 

"When  a  business  is  made  of  raising  chickens  and  ducklings  on 
a  large  scale  in  winter,  a  long  narrow  building  is  generally  con- 
structed, heated  by  hot  water  or  steam  pipes,  and  furnished  on  the 
south  side  with  an  abundance  of  window  glass.  In  this  case,  one 
hot  water  boiler  supplies  all  necessary  warmth,  and  many  chicks 
being  under  the  same  roof  are  conveniently  cared  for.  Thus  the 
cost  of  fuel  for  heating  is  reduced  to  its  lowest  figure,  and  labor  is 
considerably  economized  throughout.  This  style  of  brooder  is  not 
adapted  to  the  wants  of  the  majority,  however,  who  do  a  compara- 
tively small  business.  For  the  latter,  small  brooders  or  brooding 
houses,  having  a  capacity  of  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  chicks  each, 
are  much  more  suitable.  There  are  both  hot  water  and  hot  ait 
brooders,  but  the  former  are  more  generally  used  and  are  we  think 
much  better.  Speaking  in  general,  the  hot  water  brooder  is  pro- 
vided with  a  small  tank  or  boiler,  which  is  filled  with  water  and 
heated  by  a  kerosene  lamp.  The  hot  water  being  conducted  by 
iron  pipes  throughout  the  brooder  and  then  returned  to  be  reheatec 
and  sent  on  its  way  again.  There  are  a  great  variety  of  kinds 
which  differ  much  in  detail  of  construction,  but  the  majority  are 
some  modification  of  the  above  plan.  As  far  as  the  best  manner  oi 
application  of  heat  is  concerned,  what  appears  to  our  mind  as  mosl 
sensible  and  natural,  is  to  have  the  most  of  the  warmth  dissipatec 
through  the  air  above  and  around  the  chicks,  with  just  enough  bot- 
tom heat  to  keep  the  floor  a  little  more  than  blood  warm. 

"Outside  runs  are  of  course  necessary  to  give  the  chicks  exercise 
in  the  fresh  air,  on  all  pleasant  days.  These,  for  very  young 
chickens,  had  best  be  covered  with  glass,  partially  at  least,  as  well 
as  the  front  of  the  brooder  itself.  It  will  be  best  in  very  cole 
weather  to  have  the  brooder  stationed  in  some  room  or  house  in 


36  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

which  the  chill  of  the  atmosphere  has  been  taken  off.  If  exposed 
to  the  severity  of  the  weather,  it  will  be  necessary  to  build  it  much 
more  warmly,  as  well  as  roomier,  to  allow  greater  freedom  for  the 
chickens  to  exercise,  for  they  will  of  necessity  be  confined  much 
more  closely. 

"The  floor  of  the  brooder  should  be  covered  with  dry  loam, 
muck  or  fine  sand.  These  are  excellent  disinfectants  and  absorbents, 
especially  the  first  two.  This  material  will  need  to  be  frequently 
renewed,  in  order  to  render  the  brooder  sweet  and  wholesome. 

"The  newly  hatched  chicken  requires  a  temperature  not  much 
below  one  hundred  degrees  for  its  comfort.  This  may  be  gradually 
lowered  as  the  age  of  chick  advances.  The  chicks  themselves  will 
indicate  by  their  appearance,  whether  they  are  comfortable  or 
otherwise.  If  too  cool,  they  will  huddle  closely  together,  and  very 
likely  some  will  be  smothered  or  at  least  pressed  out  of  shape.  On 
the  other  hand,  if  too  warm,  they  will  appear  lazy  and  inactive, 
weakness  and  disease  being  the  result  of  such  an  evil.  One  of  the 
most  common  ills  to  which  little  chickens  are  subject  is  diarrhoea. 
This  is  sometimes  caused  by  improper  food,  but  often  it  is  the  re- 
sult of  catching  cold.  Hence  it  is  very  necessary  that  an  even  tem- 
perature exists  at  all  times." 

The  following  pointers  are  taken  from  Poultry  Keeper, 
Quincy,  Ills.: 

If  the  chicks  do  not  come  out  of  the  eggs  until  the  22d  day, 
or  longer,  it  indicates  that  the  temperature  of  the  egg  drawer  was 
too  low.     They  should  begin  to  pip  on  the  20th  day. 

If  they  begin  to  come  out  on  the  18th  day  it  indicates  that  the 
average  temperature  was  too  high. 

If  chicks  come  out  weak  it  indicates  either  too  high  or  too  low 
temperature,  or  that  the  eggs  were  from  immature  pullets  or  over- 
fat  hens. 

A  young  chick  is  naked,  like  a  babe  just  born,  the  down  being 
no  protection,  hence  everything  depends  on  plenty  of  heat.  Better 
have  the  brooder  too  hot  than  too  cold.  If  the  chicks  are  with  hens 
they  must  have  a  warm,  light  place,  as  a  hen  cannot  raise  chicks  in 
winter  any  better  than  it  can  be  done  artificially,  as  it  is  not  her 
natural  period  of  the  year  for  so  doing. 

No  thermometer  is  needed  in  the  brooder,  or  under  the  hen.  If 
the  chicks  crowd  together  especially  at  night,  they  need  more 
warmth.  When  they  shove  their  heads  out  of  the  sides  of  the 
brooder,  or  from  under  the  hen,  the  heat  is  just  right.  Whenever 
the  chicks  do  not  sleep  near  the  edges  of  the  brooder,  but  get  as 
close  to  each  other  as  possible,  give  more  heat. 

When  the  chicks  show  signs  of  leg  weakness,  have  clogging  of 
the  vent,  and  bowel  disease  results,  there  is  a  lack  of  warmth  in  the 
brooder,  especially  at  night.  The  night  is  when  the  chicks  meet 
with  the  greater  number  of  difficulties. 

When  chicks  have  leg  weakness,  and  the  floor  of  the  brooder 
is  very  warm,  the  cause  is  too  much  bottom  heat.  Bottom  heat  is 
excellent  for  chicks  until  they  are  a  week  old,  but  after  that  time 
there  should  be  only  warmth  enough  on  the  floor  to  not  have  the 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  37 

floor  cold.  All  warmth  should  come  over  the  chicks.  They  feel 
the  warmth  on  the  backs  with  more  satisfaction  than  on  any  other 
portion  of  the  body. 

A  single  night  may  ruin  all.  Never  let  the  brooder  become 
cold  for  an  hour.  Once  the  chicks  get  chilled  they  never  fully  re- 
cover. 

When  the  chicks  seem  to  be  continually  crying  it  means  more 
warmth  needed.      The  warmth  is  more  important  than  the  food. 

If  the  chicks  are  stupid,  drowsy,  continually  cry,  or  have  fits, 
look  on  the  heads  and  necks,  and  under  the  wings  for  the  large  lice. 
Also  examine  for  the  little  red  mites. 

Hatching  should  begin  in  October  and  end  in  April  or  May. 
The  best  prizes  are  obtained  in  April  and  May. 

It  costs  five  cents  in  food  to  raise  one  pound  of  chick.  The  cost 
of  eggs,  labor,  buildings,  etc.,  are  extra.  The  heaviest  cost  is  in 
the  eggs,  (which  are  high  in  winter)  as  they  often  fail  to  hatch. 

Hens  are  better  than  pullets  for  producing  broilers.  The  males 
should  not  be  less  than  ten  months  old. 

Eggs  from  fat  hens,  moulting  hens,  immature  pullets,  or  from 
hens  in  the  yard  with  cocks  having  frosted  combs,  chilled  eggs, 
very  small  eggs,  will  not  give  good  results. 

In  a  majority  of  cases  the  failure  is  due  to  the  eggs  and  not 
the  incubator. 

Never  try  to  save  work.  One-half  the  failures  occur  from  par- 
ties desiring  the  incubator  to  work  without  attention.  Too  much 
faith  in  the  regulator  is  dangerous.    You  must  always  be  "on  deck." 

If  rightly  managed  an  incubator  will  pay  for  itself  the  first 
hatch,  but  there  is  more  in  the  man  than  in  the  incubator.  Brains 
make  an  important  factor.     Learn  all  you  can  by  observation. 

R.  W.  Davison,  Glendola,  N.  J.,  says  the  most  important  step 
is  first-class  incubators,  and  he  adds: 

"I  always  like  an  abundance  of  ventilation.  Too  much  ventila- 
tion is  not  desirable,  but  after  the  chicks  are  nearly  all  out  of  the 
shell  then  we  want  plenty.  I  am  led  to  this  remark  from  the  fact 
that  I  have  owned  machines  that  were  lacking  in  this  respect ; 
consequently  the  chicks  had  all  they  could  do  to  keep  alive,  as  they 
use  up  a  great  deal  of  air.  Twenty-four  hours  after  hatching  they 
should  be  placed  in  the  brooders.  The  brooder  is  the  most  im- 
portant part  of  the  whole  thing  outside  of  the  laying  stock.  I  prefer 
a  brooder  with  a  good  regulator,  and,  in  fact,  could  not  get  along 
without  one.  I  am  using  (on  my  coal  stove  and  hot  water  pipe 
system)  the  regulator  made  by  the  Prairie  State  Incubator  Co., 
only  I  connect  the  lever  bar  with  a  check  draught  on  stove  pipe, 
instead  of  with  the  stove  lid,  as  they  do.  There  are  individual 
brooders  also  with  regulators.  The  best  plan  is  to  have  individual 
brooders  in  a  nursery,  and  regulate  the  outside  temperature  with  a 
small  coal  stove  (in  winter).  After  the  chicks  have  been  in  here 
about  ten  days  then  remove  to  the  regular  brooding  pens. 

"For  the  first  twelve  hours  run  the  brooders  at  ninety-eight 
degrees,  and  then  for  the  next  ten  days  run  at  ninety-four  degrees. 


38  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

"The  next  two  weeks  at  ninety  degrees  to  eighty-nine  degrees, 
and  after  that  from  eighty-eight  degrees  to  eighty  degrees.  Re- 
member that  the  degree  of  heat  is  the  all  important,  and  we  should 
be  just  as  careful  here  as  in  the  incubator. 

"I  will,  however,  go  back  to  the  incubator.  I  do  not  believe 
in  moisture  except  after  the  eggs  commence  to  pip.  I  have  tried 
it  with  incubators  in  a  cellar,  and  also  above  ground.  The  egg  itself 
will  tell  us  how  to  proceed.  The  evaporation  of  the  egg  is  the 
guide.  The  chick  must  have  room  in  which  to  turn  itself  while 
cracking  around  the  shell.  If  too  much  moisture  is  used,  the  chick 
will  grow  too  large,  and  being  wedged  in  a  house  too  small  for  it, 
will  die.  The  ventilators  in  the  incubator  alone  are  to  be  de- 
pended on  for  proper  evaporation  of  the  egg.  Each  person  will 
have  to  determine  for  himself  just  how  much  ventilation  to  give  by 
frequently  looking  at  the  eggs  (three  or  four)  and  not  how  the  air 
space  is  growing.  The  evaporations  should  be  gradual  until  by  the 
eighteenth  day  the  air  space  should  occupy  at  least  one  fourth  of 
the  eggs,  (some  operators  put  it  at  one-third.)  The  principal  of  the 
thing  is  that  the  wider  we  open  the  ventilators  the  more  air  passes 
through  the  machine  and  the  more  moisture  this  dry  air  will  extract 
from  the  egg.  I  usually  commence  by  giving  very  little  ventilation 
the  first  week,  and  then,  gradually  giving  more  until  the  eggs  are 
evaporated  about  right,  and  then  when  they  commence  to  pip  I 
give  a  little  moisture,  and  partly  close  the  ventilators  until  all  are 
out.  Of  course  the  machine  will  have  something  to  do  with  this. 
I  now  have  one  machine  in  which  I  have  to  give  all  the  ventilation  I 
can  from  the  start,  (the  ventilation  is  poor)  while  in  other  machines 
I  run  as  stated  above. 

"In  cold  weather  less  ventilation  should  be  given  than  in  warm, 
for  the  greater  the  difference  between  outside  and  inside  tempera- 
ture the  greater  will  be  the  amount  of  air  that  will  pass  through  the 
machine.  I  think  we  all  understand  that  principal.  I  have  demon- 
strated, to  my  own  personal  satisfaction,  that  there  is  money  in 
broilers  when  it  is  combined  with  eggs,  or  eggs  and  fruit.  There 
should  be  not  less  than  twenty  acres  of  land  with  the  plant  and  the 
more  the  better.  Just  so  soon  as  the  people  learn  all  these  under- 
lying principles  that  go  to  make  up  the  full  rounded  whole,  then, 
and  not  till  then,  will  there  cease  to  be  failures.  One  very  impor- 
tant point  to  be  considered  is  that  we  should  aim  to  have  something 
to  sell  at  all  seasons  of  the  year." 

"One  of  the  prettiest  sights  I  know  of  is  a  brooder  full  of  little 
chicks  from  one  to  ten  days  old,"  says  a  correspondent  of  the  New 
York  Tribune.  "I  never  grow  weary  watching  their  graceful  mo- 
tions as  they  deport  themselves  in  their  little  playground,  indus- 
triously scratching  in  the  clean  sand,  playing  at  leapfrog  or  contest- 
ing the  possession  of  a  toothsome  morsel  of  meat  or  bread  crumb, 
keeping  up  meanwhile  a  ceaseless  chatter.  The  pleasing  sight  of 
heightened  if  they  belong  to  a  variety  of  breeds.  But  to  raise  these 
little  animated  puffballs  is  where  the  work  and  skill  comes  in.  To 
bring  them  safely  through  all  the  perils  of  babyhood  and  feathering- 
out — there's  the  rub.     To  keep  them  well  is  the  secret  of  success. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  39 

I  know  of  no  more  unsatisfactory  part  of  the  poultry  business  than 
doctoring  sick  chickens.  It  is  seldom  a  success.  To  keep  them 
well  they  must  be  kept  warm.  It  is  the  first  letter  of  the  alphabet 
of  successful  chicken-raising.  I  lost  heavily  at  first  until  I  found 
this  out.  'Fifty  per  cent  or  more  of  each  hatch  would  drop  out 
with  bowel  disease  until  three  weeks  old,  and  then  many  more  when 
:hanging  from  down  to  feathers.  It  was  a  very  discouraging  ex- 
perience. I  kept  altering  my  brooders  and  experimenting  until  of 
my  last  hatches  I  lost  only  1  or  2  per  cent,  through  sickness. 

"My  great  mistake  had  been  in  not  keeping  the  brooders  warm 
snough.  I  now  keep  them  at  100  degrees  day  and  night  for  about 
a  week  until  the  chicks  get  a  little  strength,  and  then  reduce  to  95 
degrees  and  then  to  90  degrees.  Until  little  chicks  are  feathered 
they  are  but  little  better  than  naked,  and  need  a  tropical  tempera- 
ture to  which  they  can  resort  when  they  feel  the  least  chilled.  After 
they  are  10  days'  old  they  will  endure  a  considerable  degree  of  cold 
if  they  can  run  at  will  into  a  warm  brooder.  Any  attempt  to  save 
kerosene  by  turning  down  the  lamps  is  disastrous.  It  doesn't  pay  to 
save  oil  at  8  cents  a  gallon  and  lose  chicks  that  will  at  10  weeks  old 
bring  25  to  50  cents  a  pound.  At  night  the  chicks  are  exposed  to 
the  greatest  risks,  and  there  must  be  no  mistake  about  the  proper 
amount  of  heat.  Too  low  a  temperature  at  night  for  only  a  few 
hours  may  result  in  the  loss  of  many  chicks. 

"For  the  first  ten  days  they  must  not  be  allowed  to  get  far 
away  from  the  brooder.  My  brooder  house  is  divided  by  partitions 
into  sections  six  feet  wide.  The  brooders,  one  foot  higk  and  three 
feet  square,  are  set  against  the  back  wall,  one  foot  from  one  parti- 
tion and  two  feet  from  the  other.  These  spaces  are  floored  over 
level  with  the  top  of  the  brooder,  a  four-inch  board  is  in  front,  and 
inch  mesh  netting,  one  foot  wide,  stretched  and  fastened  to  that  and 
the  partitions.  The  chicks  are  not  allowed  to  go  off  this  platform 
until  ten  days  old.  The  first  couple  of  days  they  are  not  allowed 
to  go  more  than  a  foot  from  the  brooder,  and  then  only  for  a  little 
time  to  eat,  drink  and  exercise,  and  then  they  are  put  back  in  the 
brooder  and  kept  dark  and  quiet  for  a  xouple  of  hours  to  rest  and 
take  a  nap.  In  fact,  they  need  much  the  same  treatment  and  care 
the  babies  do.  I  take  a  last  look  at  them  before  I  go  to  bed.  If 
everything  is  quiet  and  the  chicks  lie  scattered  all  over  the  brooder 
floor,  then  the  heat  is  just  right.  If  there  is  a  noise  of  scuffling 
and  crowding,  and  the  chicks  are  hugging  the  center  of  the  brooder, 
they  need  more  heat  at  once,  or  some  of  them  will  get  under  foot  and 
be  trampled  to  death,  and  bowel  disease  will  put  in  an  appearance. 
If  they  lie  with  their  heads  outside  the  curtains,  the  brooder  is  too 
warm,  and  there  is  danger  of  leg  weakness.  It  may  be  objected 
that  all  this  watching  and  care  takes  a  great  deal  of  time,  and  so  it 
does ;  but  just  such  watching  and  care,  day  and  night,  must  be 
exercised  or  else  the  artificial  rearing  of  chickens  will  prove  a  dismal 
and  exasperating  failure." 

The  Poultry  Keeper,  in  taking  up  the  subject,  "Why  eggs  do 
not  hatch,"  gives  some  very  good  pointers,  as  follows : 


40  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

"The  principal  loss  with  broilers  is  in  hatching,  not  that  the 
incubators  are  at  fault,  but  because  of  the  difficulty  of  getting  fertile 
eggs.  There  may  be  "more  blanks  than  prizes."  When  one  must 
buy  four  eggs,  each  costing  three  cents,  the  first  cost  of  producing 
a  chick  may  be  more  than  the  whole  cost  of  the  food  required  tc 
carry  it  to  a  marketable  age.  It  is  on  the  super-abundance  of  worth 
less  eggs  that  all  the  hopes  are  shattered.  The  hatching  of  chick: 
in  mid-winter,  either  by  hens  or  by  incubators,  is  something  that 
keeps  the  operator  in  doubt  until  the  hatch  is  over,  whether  he  will 
have  the  egg  drawer  "alive"  with  chicks  or  have  to  carry  out  the 
eggs  in  large  baskets  to  be  buried. 

"The  reasons  for  the  loss  of  chicks  dying  in  the  shell  are  too' 
numerous  to  be  known,  and  one  of  which  may  be  the  cause. 
Neither  the  hen  nor  the  incubator  fails  to  lose  chicks  in  that  man- 
ner. The  following  are  some  of  the  causes.  Eggs  from  immature 
pullets,  cock  too  fat,  hens  too  fat,  hens  beginning  to  molt,  shells  of 
eggs  too  thick,  cock  with  frosted  comb,  cock  inactive,  feeding  high- 
ly seasoned  food,  lack  of  exercise  of  hens,  exposing  the  eggs  just 
when  the  chicks  are  coming  out,  lack  of  bulky  tood  for  hens,  natural 
weakness  of  parents,  inbreeding,  lack  of  vigor  in  male,  inherent 
lack  of  vitality  in  chicks,  too  close  and  persistent  sitting  by  the  hen, 
thus  overheating  the  eggs ;  hens  once  affected  with  roup,  cockerel 
not  matured.  The  above  are  only  a  few  causes.  If  eggs  are  col- 
lected from  all  sources  (as  is  often  done  for  incubators)  it  is  an 
utter  impossibility  to  avoid  securing  eggs  that  will  allow  chicks  to 
develop,  but  which  cannot  get  out.  To  know  the  exact  cause  of 
failure,  in  each  case,  is  too  much  for  any  living  human  being. 

"The  majority  of  failures  are  not  due  to  the  incubators  but 
from  using  eggs  from  fat  hens.  If  an  incubator  hatches  one  egg  it 
should  hatch  all  that  will  hatch. 

"One  of  the  mistakes  usually  made  is  in  supposing  that  eggs 
must  have  moisture ;  that  is,  the  eggs  must  be  in  the  presence  of 
damp  earth,  or  resting  on  it.  The  eggs  under  hens  are  therefore 
sprinkled,  while  pans  of  water  are  kept  in  incubators  to  supply 
moisture.  Recent  experiments  show  that  during  incubation  the 
moisture  (water)  in  the  eggs  is  rapidly  given  off,  and  near  the  end 
of  a  hatch  tests  show  a  very  large  air  space  at  the  large  end  of  the 
egg.  The  chick  does  not  fill  this  space,  but  seems  packed  in  the 
egg  lower  down.  When  too  much  moisture  is  given  the  chick 
grows  more  than  it  should,  and  becomes  too  large  to  remain  in  the 
egg  and  not  sufficiently  developed  to  come  out.  The  conclusion 
is  that  no  moisture  is  necessary  for  incubation  unless  in  extremely 
dry  locations,  and  then  not  so  much  with  a  view  of  supplying 
moisture  as  to  prevent  too  much  evaporation  from  the  egg. 

"Chicks  will  die  in  the  shells,  however,  despite  all  that  can  be 
done,  as  there  are  so  many  conditions  regulating  incubation  which 
cannot  be  all"  complied  with.  A  chick  may  inherit  weakness  from 
its  parents,  or  the  eggs  used  may  not  be  of  normal  size,  or  perfect  in 
every  respect.  If  a  dozen  hens  are  sitting  at  one  time  it  will  be 
found  that  all  are  not  equally  successful  in  hatching.     Some  will 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  41 

hatch  every  egg,  while  others  will  bring  off  but  few  chicks.  Even 
the  temperatures  of  the  bodies  of  the  hens  vary.  An  egg  is  a  won- 
derful thing,  and  no  one  can  predict  in  advance  what  it  will  bring 
forth. 

"Eggs  from  fat  hens  usually  do  not  hatch,  but  frequently  th< 
eggs  are  fertile,  and  all  goes  well  for  about  ten  days,  and  then— the> 
die  in  the  shells. 

"It  is  now  known  that  eggs  in  incubators  (or  under  hens)  re- 
quire no  moisture  at  all,  but  there  must  be  no  dry  air  currents  ovei 
the  eggs." 


Plate  6.— CHICK— TWENTY-FIRST  DAY  INCUBATION 

Mrs.  Harry  E.  Hoak,  in  Farmer's  Guide,  says : 

"There  seems  to  be  a  feeling  among  farmers  that  an  incubator 
is  a  very  complex  machine,  and  that  it  takes  a  great  deal  of  skill  to 
handle  one,  while  the  truth  is  there  is  nothing  complex  about  them, 
and  the  average  farmer's  wife  who  is  willing  to  spend  a  share  of  her 
time  attending  to  an  incubator  ma)'  be  very  successful.  Right  here 
let  me  say,  don't  expect  too  much,  and  remember  when  you  read  of 
95  per  cent  hatches,  it  means  that  per  cent  of  fertile  eggs,  not  of  al' 
the  eggs  put  in  the  machine.  It  is  always  better  to  be  agreeably 
surprised  than  disappointed. 

"It  is  better  to  have  your  incubator  in  the  cellar,  especially  if 
the  weather  is  cold,  as  there  is  less  variation  in  the  temperature 
there  than  in  the  upper  rooms.  In  warm  weather  we  have  had  ver) 
good  success  when  the  machine  was  placed  in  a  room  adjoining  th« 
kitchen,  and  it  was  less  trouble  to  care  for. 

"When  the  machine  comes  from  the  factory,  unpack  and  put 
together  according  to  directions.      Then  take  a  spirit  level  and  see 


42  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

that  it  is  level  on  all  four  sides.  If  it  is  a  hot-water  machine — that 
is,  one  having  a  tank  of  water  above  the  egg  chamber — the  tank 
must  be  filled  with  hot  hater  at  about  112  degrees.  Fill  and  light 
the  lamp  and  place  in  position.  Place  the  thermometer  on  the  egg 
tray  and  close  the  machine.  When  the  thermometer  registers  100 
degrees  adjust  the  regulator  and  let  it  run  until  morning.  If  in  the 
morning  it  is  still  running  at  100  degrees  it  is  ready  for  the  eggs. 

"And  now  a  word  about  the  eggs :  It  is  far  better  to  have  the 
eggs  as  nearly  uniform  as  possible,  and  it  is  therefore  best  to  have 
them  from  one  breed  or  cross.  They  will  all  hatch  at  nearly  the 
same  time.  They  will  be  a  more  uniform  lot  of  chicks.  They  will 
all  mature  at  the  same  time.  The  latter  is  quite  an  important  item 
if  they  are  to  be  sold  as  broilers. 

"To  go  a  little  farther  back,  see  to  it  that  the  producers  of  those 
eggs  are  strong,  healthy  hens,  that  they  are  mated  to  vigorous  males, 
that  they  are  not  overfed,  but  are  given  a  variety  of  food,  and  that 
they  take  the  proper  amount  of  exercise.  All  these  details  must 
be  attended  to  if  we  would  be  successful.  The  eggs  should  be  gath- 
ered several  times  a  day  in  cold  weather,  and  placed  on  racks  in 
the  cellar  where  they  can  be  turned  every  other  day.  Use  no  eggs 
having  ridges  around  them  or  any  that  are  ill-shaped,  and  use  those 
as  nearly  one  size  as  possible. 

"It  has  been  well  said  that  hatching  is  only  half  the  battle,  if, 
indeed,  it  is  that.  In  our  estimation  the  great  causes  of  fatality 
among  brooder  chicks  are  lack  of  exercise  and  overfeeding.  Do 
not  crowd  150  chicks  into  a  so-called  200  size  brooder,  or  you  will 
be  sure  to  lose  them.  Fifty  will  be  plenty  to  put  in  one  brooder. 
When  the  chicks  begin  to  hatch  get  your  brooders  in  readiness  by 
heating  to  95  degrees.  You  may  gradually  decrease  the  heat  in 
the  brooders  from  95  degrees  the  first  week  to  90  degrees  the 
second  week,  85  to  80  degrees  the  third  and  fourth  weeks,  and  80 
to  70  degrees  the  fifth  and  sixth  weeks,  and  after  that  no  heat  will 
be  needed.  Be  sure  your  chicks  are  thoroughly  dried  before  putting 
in  the  brooder." 

A  writer  in  Wallace's  Farmer  gives  an  interesting  account  of  a 
business  of  supplying  incubator  eggs.    We  reproduce  it  as  follows : 

"From  November  to  January  there  is  a  demand  for  incubator 
eggs.  The  people  who  make  a  specialty  of  broiler  raising  cannot, 
as  a  rule,  produce  all  the  eggs  which  they  need  for  the  purpose.  The 
poultry  man  who  has  succeeded  in  making  the  fact  known  that  he 
understands  how  to  care  for  his  flock  in  order  to  make  it  produce 
a  reasonable  per  cent  of  fertile  eggs  can  build  up  a  permanent  trade 
in  this  line  which  will  be  exceedingly  profitable.  He  must  confine 
himself  to  a  breed  however,  which  is  approved  by  the  broiler  raisers. 
The  Plymouth  Rocks  and  the  Wyandottes  are  good  broilers,  the  lat- 
ter being  the  preference  of  the  majority  of  those  engaged  in  the  busi- 
ness. Eggs  from  mixed  lots  of  hens  are  not  in  demand  for  this 
purpose  as  the  product  will  lack  uniformity,  and  to  a  greater  or  less 
extent  will  be  deficient  in  the  broiler-making  qualities.  As  broiler 
raising  is  not  carried  on  to  any  large  extent  except  in  the  neighbor- 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  43 

hood  of  the  large  cities  of  the  East,  it  might  be  supposed  that  there 
would  be  no  sale  for  incubator  eggs  in  the  West.  This  writer  lives 
in  northwestern  Iowa,  and  we  are  just  finishing  out  a  contract  for 
five  hundred  incubator  eggs  to  go  to  New  York.  When  that  is 
completed  we  have  another  to  begin  on  for  California.  We  get  five 
dollars  a  hundred  for  the  eggs  delivered  to  the  express  office  here. 
We  look  upon  it  as  a  good  winter  business,  and  propose  to  put  our- 
selves in  a  position  for  carrying  it  on  on  a  larger  scale.  The  New 
York  order  would  be  duplicated  if  we  had  the  facilities  for  filling  it. 
We  have  the  breed  which  exactly  suits  this  customer  and  the  ship- 
ments which  we  have  sent  to  him  heretofore  seem  to  have  been 
very  satisfactory.  If  this  were  not  the  case  he  would  not  send 
eight  hundred  miles  for  our  eggs.  There  must  be  scores  of  egg 
farmers  in  his  own  neighborhood  who  keep  the  same  breed  that  we 
keep.  We  are  not  telling  what  breed  we  keep,  as  that  would  lay 
us  open  to  the  suspicion  of  trying  to  use  the  reading  columns  of 
the  Farmer  to  further  our  private  interests,  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact 
the  breed  cuts  no  important  figure  in  the  case  so  long  as  it  is 
confined  to  the  list  which  is  generally  endorsed  by  those  in  the 
broiler  business.  The  broiler  raisers,  like  the  egg  farmers,  are  not 
a  unit  in  their  opinions  as  to  which  is  the  best  breed  for  this  pur- 
pose. Some  of  them  no  doubt  would  not  accept  our  eggs  as  a 
present,  as  they  have  an  established  trade  with  calls  for  a  product 
altogether  different.  The  thing  for  the  egg  farmer  to  do  is  to  find 
out  who  wants  eggs  of  his  kind,  and  then  be  so  careful  and  pains- 
taking in  filling  the  orders  when  he  has  succeeded  in  getting  them 
that  the  customer  will  feel  secure  in  giving  him  more  of  them 
every  year.  You  cannot  put  a  business  of  this  kind  solidly  on  its 
feet  in  one  or  two  seasons,  but  in  the  course  of  time  it  will  be  some- 
thing worth  striving  for  if  the  power  behind  it  knows  how  to  make 
it  go." 

The  Maine  Experiment  Station,  Oronto,  gives  some  good  mat- 
ter in  its  reports  of  trials  made  with  artificial  methods.  Its  report 
says: 

"Incubators  have  been  so  much  improved  that  there  are 
several  kinds  on  the  market  that  we  feel  sure  will  hatch  as  many 
chicks  from  a  given  lot  of  eggs  as  can  be  done  by  selecting  broody 
hens.  They  require  little  care,  maintain  an  even  temperature,  and 
are  easily  adjusted  to  meet  the  increase  in  temperature  arising 
from  developments  going  on  in  the  eggs.  In  some  machines  the 
moisture  supply  is  automatic  and  adapted  to  the  requirements.  In 
others  it  has  to  be  supplied,  and  skill  is  necessary  in  determining 
the  quantity  needed.  The  economy  of  the  incubator  is  very  great. 
A  360-egg  machine  will  do  the  work  of  nearly  thirty  broody  hens, 
and  can  be  kept  at  work  continually,  if  desired. 

"We  use  indoor  brooders,  mostly,  and  very  much  prefer  them 
to  any  outside  brooders  we  have  ever  seen  in  use.  The  portable 
brooder  houses  are  built  on  runners  so  that  they  may  be  readily 
moved  about.  The  houses  are  twelve  feet  long,  some  of  them  are 
six  and  others  seven  feet  wide.     Seven  feet  is  the  better  width.  Thev 


44  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

ire  six  feet  high  in  front  and  four  feet  high  at  the  back.  The  frame 
is  of  2x3  inch  stuff;  the  floor  is  double  boarded.  The  building 
is  boarded,  papered  and  shingled  all  over.  A  door,  two  feet  wide  is 
in  the  center  of  the  front,  and  a  six  light,  sliding  window  is  on  each 
side  of  it.  A  small  slide  is  put  in  the  door,  near  the  top,  by  which 
ventilation  may  be  obtained  early  in  the  season,  before  the  windows 
can  be  kept  open.  Since  shingles  on  the  walls  near  the  bottom 
are  liable  to  be  torn  off  in  moving  the  houses,  double  boarding  on 
the  walls  would  be  preferred.  Two  brooders  are  placed  in  each 
of  these  houses  and  fifty  to  sixty  chicks  are  put  with  each  brooder. 
A  low  partition  separates  the  flocks  while  they  are  young,  but  later 
it  has  to  be  made  higher.  The  houses  are  large  enough  so  that  a 
person  can  go  in  and  do  the  work  comfortably  and  each  one  ac- 
commodates one  hundred  chicks  until  the  cockerels  are  large 
enough  to  be  removed. 

"In  the  Fall  these  houses  are  grouped  together,  twenty  or 
thirty  feet  from  each  other,  so  as  to  make  the  care  of  the  young 
chicks  convenient  in  early  Spring,  while  the  brooders  are  not  in  use. 
"About  the  20th  of  June,  the  grass  is  cut  on  some  field  near  the 
main  poultry  or  farm  buildings,  and  the  brooder  houses  are  drawn 
out,  with  their  contents  of  chickens,  and  located  fifty  to  seventy- 
five  feet  from  each  other,  in  line,  so  that  they  may  be  reached  with 
little  travel.  The  chickens  are  shut  into  small  yards,  adjoining  the 
houses,  for  about  a  week,  after  which  they  are  allowed  to  run  to- 
gether. They  mostly  keep  to  their  houses,  although  they  wander 
away  quite  long  distances  during  the  day,  returning  at  feed  time, 
and  at  night. 

"When  the  chicks  are  thirty  to  forty  hours  old  they  are  carried 
in  warm  covered  baskets  to  the  brooders,  and  fifty  or  sixty  are  put 
under  each  hover,  where  there  temperature  is  between  ninety-five 
and  one  hundred  degrees.  The  temperature  is  not  allowed  to  fall 
below  ninety-five  degrees  the  first  week,  or  ninety  during  the  second 
week ;  then  it  is  gradually  reduced  according  to  the  temperature 
outside,  care  being  taken  not  to  drive  the  chicks  out  by  too  much 
heat,  or  to  cause  them  to  crowd  together  under  the  hover  because 
they  are  cold.  They  should  flatten  out  separately  when  young, 
and  a  little  later  lie  with  their  heads  just  at  the  edge  of  the  hover. 
Under  no  condition  are  they  allowed  to  huddle  outside  of  the 
brooder.  They  huddle  because  they  are  cold,  and  they  should  be 
put  under  the  hover  to  get  warm,  until  they  learn  to  do  so  of  their 
own  accord.  Neither  are  they  allowed  to  stay  under  the  hover  too 
much,  but  are  forced  out  into  the  cooler  air  where  they  gain 
strength  in  the  day  time.  They  are  not  allowed  to  get  more  than 
a  foot  from  the  hover  during  the  first  few  days ;  then  a  little  farther 
away  each  day,  and  down  onto  the  house  floor  about  the  fourth  day. 
if  the  weather  is  not  too  cold,  but  they  must  come  out  from  under 
the  hover  frequently. 

"The  floor  of  the  brooder  is  cleaned  every  day  and  kept  well 
sprinkled  with  sharp,  fine  crushed  rock,  known  in  the  market  as 
'chicken  grit.'     The  floor  of  the  house  is  covered  with  clover  leaves, 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  45 

or  hay  or  chaff,  from  the  feeding  floor  in  the  cattle  barns.  For  raising 
wintei  chickens  the  long  piped  brooder  house  is  indispensable,  and 
it  has  many  advantages  when  used  at  any  season  of  the  year.  The 
advantages  are  especially  great  when  raising  chickens  if  April  or 
May  prove  to  be  cold  and  wet,  for  then  the  small  houses  are  apt  to 
be  cold  outside  of  the  brooders. 

"The  expenditure  is  greater  for  the  piped  house,  for  the  reason 
that  colony  nouses  should  be  provided  in  which  the  chickens  may 
be  sheltered  after  they  leave  the  brooder  house.  In  ordinary  sea- 
sons we  experience  no  difficulty  in  raising  April  and  May  hatched 
chicks  in  the  small  houses.  With  proper  feeding,  pullets  hatched 
in  these  months  are  early  enough  to  do  good  work  throughout  the 
year." 


46  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Pointers    on    Feeding,    Value    of    Feed    Stuffs,    Together    With 
Numerous  Bills  of  Fare. 

Chick  grit  should  be  about  the  size  of  coarse  sand.  See  that 
the  chicks  have  it  constantly  before  them. 

Do  not  put  meat  scraps  in  the  mash  the  first  week. 

Hard-boiled  eggs  and  wet  cornmeal  do  more  harm  than  good 
to  young  chicks. 

Keep  the  chicks  busy.  Scatter  millet  or  canary  seed  among  some 
light  scratching  material. 

Powdered  charcoal — a  teaspoonful  to  a  quart  of  feed — should 
be  given  daily. 

Lettuce,  onion  tops  and  lawn  clippings,  all  cut  fine,  make  the 
best  green  diet. 

Be  careful  to  neither  overfeed  nor  underfeed. 

It  is  very  important  to  have  regular  hours  for  feeding. 

Don't  have  a  feast  to-day  and  a  famine  to-morrow. 

Give  fresh  water  twice  a  day  during  hot  weather. 

Be  sure  to  scald  the  drinking  fountains  thoroughly  once  a  week 
during  hot  weather. 

Scatter  the  grain  so  that  the  "bullies"  in  the  flock  cannot  crowd 
out  the  more  timid  ones. 

It  is  well  for  all  to  understand,  writes  James  Rankin,  that  chicks 
can  be  forced  to  a  greater  weight  in  a  given  time,  when  hatched 
and  grown  artificially,  than  can  possibly  be  done  under  hens. 

J.  H.  Drevenstedt  says  the  crop  of  a  week-old  chick  holds  less 
than  a  teaspoonful,  and  if  filled  at  sunset  will  be  exhausted  long  be- 
fore sunrise,  and  hunger  for  an  hour  means  a  day  lost  in  growth. 

"Little  and  often"  is  a  good  rule  in  feeding. 

According  to  the  New  York  Agricultural  Experiment  Station, 
the  cost  of  food,  per  chick,  to  weigh  one  pound,  on  ground  grain, 
is  three  cents :  on  whole  grain,  three  and  seven-tenth  cents.  After 
making  repeated  tests  in  feeding,  the  Station  concludes:  The 
ground  grain  ration  proved  considerably  more  profitable  than  the 
whole  grain  ration  with  the  growing  chicks. 

Beware  of  sour  food.  Always  throw  away  all  soft  food  not 
consumed. 

For  chicks,  clover  meal  is  better  than  clover  hay. 

W.  R.  Curtiss  &  Co.,  Ransom viile,  N.  Y.,  believes  in  feeding 
broilers  five  times  a  day  in  the  start,  and  later  three  times. 

J.  H.  Seeley,  formerly  manager  of  Ex-Vice  President  Morton's 
New  York  broiler  plant,  says  he  finds  there  are  less  losses  among 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  47 

:hicks  when  fed  on  dry  feed,  but  he  likes  a  variety — say  cracked 
wheat,  cracked  corn,  and  cracked  oats,  or  hulled  oats.  But  when 
it  comes  to  fattening,  he  prefers  scalded  feed. 

F.  Bause,  New  Berlin,  Pa.,  keeps  fine  grit  and  oyster  shell  on 
the  brooder  floor.  The  feed  for  the  first  ten  days  are  equal  parts 
bread  crumbs,  bran,  rolled  oats  and  millet  seed.  After  ten  days 
equal  parts  cornmeal,  bran  and  sifted  oat  feed,  and  five  per  cent 
meat  meal. 

J.  E.  Stevenson,  Columbus,  N.  J.,  says,  when  obtainable,  he 
feeds  stale  baker's  bread,  moistened  in  milk,  for  the  first  week  or 
two.  Then  he  gradually  changes  to  cornmeal,  wheat  bran,  ground 
oats,  equal  parts,  and  ten  per  cent  of  ground  meat,  moistened  to  a 
crumbly  mass ;  with  cracked  corn,  wheat,  etc.,  once  or  twice  a  day. 
He  begins  by  feeling  every  two  hours,  or  even  less,  and  feeds  five 
times  a  day  until  ready  for  market. 

William  H.  Child,  Glenside,  Pa.,  says  he  starts  his  chicks  on 
rolled  oats,  dry,  and  when  they  are  a  week  old  gives  them  a  mash 
made  of  American  Poultry  Food,  clover  meal  and  animal  meal. 
He  feeds  five  times  a  day  at  first,  quantity  only  such  as  they  will 
clean  up  promptly,  gradually  decreasing  the  number  of  times  he 
feeds  as  they  grow  older.  He  adds  powdered  charcoal  to  the  mash 
twice  a  week,  and  keeps  grit  and  water  at  hand  all  the  time. 

William  H.  Jones,  Lincoln  University,  Pa.,  says  the  first  three 
days  stale  bread  soaked  in  milk  and  squeezed  dry  is  kept  before 
the  chicks.  On  the  fourth  day  he  commences  to  feed  one  part  each 
of  meal,  bran,  brown  middlings,  Western  ground  oats ;  thoroughly 
scalded,  and  given  four  times  a  day  until  two  weeks  old.  Then  to 
the  above  mixture  he  adds  a  part  each  of  cut  clover  hay  and  meat 
meal,  up  to  eight  weeks  of  age.  *  Then  he  leaves  out  the  bran,  and 
makes  it  two  parts  cornmeal,  and  in  place  of  oats  adds  cotton  seed 
meal  until  the  chicks  are  ten  weeks  old.  He  keeps  before  them 
charcoal  and  grit. 

George  G.  Harley,  Hammonton,  N.  J.,  one  of  the  most  prac- 
tical broiler  experts  in  the  country,  says  the  first  day  he  gives  noth- 
ing but  wheat  bran  to  peck  at.  The  next  day  he  feeds  rolled  oats, 
and  continues  to  feed  it  until  the  chicks  are  ten  days  old,  keeping 
dry  bran,  charcoal  and  fine  oyster  shell  by  them  all  the  time.  He 
feeds  every  two  hours,  just  what  they  will  eat  up  clean.  Aften  ten 
days  he  feeds  a  moist  mash  in  the  morning  and  evening,  composed 
of  cornmeal,  middlings,  bran  and  ground  oats,  with  meat  scraps  in 
proportion  to  the  age  of  the  chicks.  At  noon  he  feeds  wheat  or 
cracked  corn,  and  keeps  green  stuff  by  them,  so  they  can  eat  all  they 
want,  until  the  last  two  weeks.  Then  they  are  fed  all  the  celery  they 
can  eat.  Mr.  Harley  was  the  originator  of  celery-fed  broilers 
which  had  such  a  big  sale  in  Washington,  D.  C,  some  years  ago. 

Henry  Nico'ai,  Hammonton,  N.  J.,  one  of  the  pioneer  broiler 
raisers  of  this  country,  fed  dry  cornmeal  for  the  first  three  or  four 
days.  Then  he  dampened  a  very  little  of  it  and  added  some  well- 
cooked  potatoes  chopped  up  very  fine.  After  two  or  three  weeks 
he  gave  scalded  feed — cornmeal  (plenty  of  it),  a  little  bran,  second 


48  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

grade  flour  or  middlings,  and  a  little  ground  meat.     For  the  first 
week  or  ten  days  he  fed  five  times  a  day ;  after  that,  three  times. 

In  an  experiment  conducted  at  the  Purdue  (Indiana)  Station 
chickens  fed  milk  and  grain  made  an  average  weekly  gain 
of  4.46  ounces,  while  those  receiving  no  milk  gained  but  2.62  ounces 
per  week.  The  growth  of  the  milk-fed  chickens  was  more  uniform 
as  well  as  more  rapid.  The  general  result  seemed  to  show  the  bene- 
ficial effect  in  every  way  of  the  skim-milk. 

It  is  not  possible  for  all  to  give  their  chicks  unlimited  range, 
says  Ohio  Poultry  Journal,  and  in  such  cases  the  feeder  will  have 
to  make  up  the  deficiency  by  feeding  bone-forming  elements.  The 
best  of  these  is  green  cut  bone. 

William  C.  King,  Hopkinton,  Mass.,  says  he  feeds  no  meat  food 
to  baby  chicks  until  they  are  four  weeks  old.  After  that  about  ten 
per  cent  of  the  mash  food  is  composed  of  meat  in  some  form  as 
long  as  he  keeps  the  bird.  He  has  found  that  an  over-supply  of 
meat  fed  to  stock  in  confinement  is  apt  to  cause  a  watery  discharge 
from  the  bowels,  but  birds  on  free  range  can  stand  nearly  any 
amount. 

Geo.  Hall,  East  Islip,  N.  Y.,  says  in  feeding  green  cut  bone, 
about  a  half  ounce  can  be  allowed  for  half-grown  chicks,  but  little 
ones  should  not  have  over  an  eighth  of  an  ounce  each. 

When  the  chicks  have  good  appetites,  but  weak  legs,  the 
chicks  moving  about  on  their  knees,  it  denotes  too  rapid  growth.  A 
teaspoonful  of  citrate  of  iron  and  ammonia  (a  solid)  in  each  quart 
of  drinking  water,  is  recommended. 

Dr.  G.  M.  Twitchell,  before  the  Massachusetts  State  Board  of 
Agriculture,  said : 

"In  no  place  is  skimmed  milk  more  valuable  than  in  growing 
chicks.  In  my  own  experience  I  found  the  best  ration  for  market 
poultry  to  be  thirty  per  cent  of  oats  and  wheat,  twenty  of  corn  and 
ten  of  linseed  all  ground  together  and  ten  of  meat  scraps  added. 
This  mixed  into  a  dough  with  skimmed-milk  I  would  bake  until 
thoroughly  cooked,  set  away  for  a  day  or  more  and  then  pound  fine 
and  feed.  In  this  combination  I  consider  linseed  one  of  the  most 
valuable  parts,  it  is  rich  albuminous  food  and  hence  valuable  in 
forcing  growth.  If  these  chicks  were  intended  to  furnish  future 
layers  I  would  change  the  ration  to  meet  the  changed  condition. 
No  matter  how  choice  the  stock,  how  careful  the  breeding,  how 
well  balanced  the  ration,  unless  regularity  be  observed  in  feeding  it 
is  utterly  useless  to  expect  to  succeed.  Hunger  must  be  appeased 
at  once,  or  the  system  draws  upon  its  own  stores  for  nourishment. 
If  regular  hours  are  observed  nature  adapts  the  animal  to  the  con- 
dition. Green  food  must  be  supplied  liberally,  and  for  want  of  this 
many  broods  are  lost.  A  good  plan  is  to  sow  oats  or  rape-seed  in 
boxes,  and  cut  when  two  or  three  inches  high,  chopping  fine  and 
feeding  freely." 

Frank  Y.  Hopping,  tells  in  the  Germantown  Telegraph,  how 
he  feeds  chicks  to  get  big  broilers  for  the  early  market.  He  says:  "I 
have  found  the  following  method  of  feeding  chicks  for  .broilers  the 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  49 

best :  The  first  week  I  give  cracked  wheat,  then  after  that  I  give 
a  mixture  of  ground  oats  and  corn,  equal  parts,  about  a  fourth  part 
of  middlings,  and  a  handful  of  ground  meat.  The  whole  mixture 
is  scalded  several  hours  before  feeding,  and  then  fed  only  moist. 
Also  chopped  up  cabbage,  boiled  or  raw  potatoes  and  other  vegeta- 
bles, feeding  either  separate  or  in  with  the  mash.  Whole  wheat 
or  cracked  corn  is  also  fed  between  meals.  The  mash  is  fed  morning 
noon  and  night,  and  the  same  continued  until  ready  for  market,  the 
supply  of  meat,  however,  being  gradually  increased  the  older  they 
become.  Coal  ashes,  charcoal  and  ground  oyster  shells  are  con- 
stantly within  reach." 

M.  Sumner  Perkins,  in  Farm  Journal,  says : 

"For  twenty-four  hours  the  chick  needs  no  food  whatever,  and 
is  better  off  without  it.  For  the  first  two  or  three  weeks,  a  mixture 
of  hard  boiled  eggs  and  bread  crumbs,  moistened  in  sweet  milk  is  as 
good  as  anything.  Eggs  are  first-class  food,  if  not  fed  too  plentifully, 
in  which  case  they  are  very  liable  to  produce  diarrhoea.  Oatmeal 
is  another  very  nutritious  food,  and  it  may  be  either  boiled  to  the 
consistency  of  a  stiff  pudding,  or  it  may  be  mixed  with  other  grain 
and  baked  into  a  cake.  Waste  bread  from  hotels  can  be  purchased 
cheaply.  This  contains  beside  common  wheat  bread,  a  species  oi 
corn  cake  that  forms  splendid  chicken  food.  Corn  cake  can  easily 
be  made  by  anyone  by  mixing  a  little  shorts  with  corn  meal,  prepar- 
ing and  baking  the  same  as  in  the  case  of  ordinary  family  bread. 
Milk  in  all  its  forms,  is  much  relished  by  all  classes  of  poultry. 
Chickens  when  allowed  plenty  of  the  same,  can  well-nigh  be  seen 
to  grow.  The  bones  and  frame-work  under  such  a  diet  develops 
rapidly  and  perfectly.  As  the  chicken  grows  older,  cracked  corn, 
oats,  wheat,  barley  and  buckwheat,  can  all  be  used  with  profit.  The 
greater  the  variety  in  the  food  and  manner  of  feeding,  the  better 
it  is. 

"Animal  food  must  always  be  supplied,  a  little  at  first,  the 
quantity  to  increase  with  age  of  the  chicks.  Beef  trimmings,  livers, 
hearts,  etc.,  of  sheep  and  cattle,  when  boiled  and  finely  chopped  will 
fill  the  bill.  If  the  prepared  beef  scrap  of  commerce  be  relied  upon, 
care  should  be  exercised  to  buy  one  the  best  grade.  A  greasy, 
mouldy  article  is  in  no  wise  suitable  for  chickens,  and  disease  will 
surely  follow  the  use  of  such.  The  tender  heart  of  a  cabbage,  clover 
cured  when  in  full  bloom,  steamed  and  finely  chopped,  potatoes  and 
other  roots,  will  supply  acceptable  vegetable  food. 

"Coarse  sand,  bits  of  charcoal,  cracked  oyster  shells  and 
broken  bones,  should  always  be  in  reach  as  each  of  these  substances 
has  its  own  use. 

"To  sum  this  whole  matter  of  winter  chicken-raising  up  in  a 
nut-shell,  select  vigorous,  breeding  stock,  incubate  only  large  per- 
fect eggs  from  the  same,  place  the  chicks  soon  after  hatched  in  a 
good  brooder,  comfortably  warmed,  feed  well  upon  a  variety  of 
nourishing  and  natural  food,  keep  all  appurtenances  scrupulously 
clean,  and  the  chickens  will  take  care  of  themselves.  It  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  the  chick  in  winter  is  wholly  dependent  upon  the 


50  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

attentions  of  the  attendant  for  everything  it  receives,  so  that  no  de- 
tail of  proper  management  must  be  omitted." 

R.  W.  Davison,  in  Agricultural  Epitomist,  says: 

"Some  people  claim  that  it  is  easier  to  hatch  chickens  than  it  is 
to  raise  them.  No  doubt  that  in  such  cases  the  brooder  or  way  of 
managing  is  to  blame.  It  must  be  remembered  that  the  chicks  come 
from  the  incubator  where  the  temperature  is  anywhere  from  ioc 
to  105  degrees,  (the  heat  ought  to  be  run  down  to  90  or  95  degrees 
after  all  the  chicks  are  out  of  the  shell)  so  that  it  will  not  be  advis- 
able to  put  them  in  a  cold  brooder  or  cold  room.  For  the  first  ten 
days,  not  longer,  the  brooder  ought  to  stand  in  a  warm  room  or 
where  the  outside  temperature  does  not  fall  below  65  degrees. 
This  will  prevent  the  little  fellows  getting  chilled  if  they  should  stay 
outside  of  the  brooder  too  long.  If  the  outdoor  brooder  is  used 
then  they  can  be  confined  to  it  for  the  ten  days  if  not  too  crowded  ; 
thus  the  warm  room  will  not  be  so  necessary.  To  prevent  the  chicks 
from  wandering  away  from  the  brooders  too  far  at  first  stand  up 
five  inch  wide  boards  forming  a  little  pen  along  the  front  of  the 
brooder.  When  the  chicks  get  large  enough  to  jump  over  they  can 
be  removed. 

"While  the  food  is  a  very  important  consideration  with  brooder 
chicks,  the  manner  of  giving  it  is  just  as  important.  Now  the  ques- 
tion of  exercise  should  not  be  overlooked.  These  little  fellows 
should  be  taught  to  exercise  when  a  week  old.  Each  little  pen 
should  have  litter  in  it.  If  it  can  be  had  there  is  nothing  better 
than  clover  hay  chaff — the  leaves,  heads  and  seeds  that  shake  off  in 
handling  the  hay.  Next  to  clover  chaff  comes  cut  straw,  cut  in  half- 
inch  lengths.  Do  not  have  the  litter  too  thick  on  the  floor  at  first, 
say  half  an  inch  deep,  but  as  the  chicks  grow  increase  the  depth. 
Induce  scratching  by  scattering  a  little  cracked  wheat  or  millet  seed 
in  the  chaff.  This  exercise  will  keep  the  body  healthy  and  prevent 
leg  weakness.  It  must  be  remembered  that  brooder  chicks  do  not 
have  all  outdoors  to  run  in,  neither  do  they  have  a  mother  to  teacli 
them  this  'fine  art.'  " 

Arthur  G.  Duston,  of  Marlboro,  Mass.,  has  been  very  success- 
ful in  growing  broilers.  He  advises  that  care  must  be  taken  not  to 
get  the  chicks  chilled  in  transferring  from  the  incubator  to  the 
brooder. 

For  the  first  week,  warmth  is  considered  more  essential  than 
food. 

At  the  close  of  their  first  day  in  the  brooder  they  are  given  a 
feed  of  rolled  oats.  Next  morning  they  get  more  rolled  oats  with  a. 
dish  of  warm  milk  to  drink.  The  milk  is  fed  from  a  can  fountain, 
made  from  an  old  fruit  can  notched  at  the  lower  edge,  which  is  filled 
and  inverted  on  an  old  saucer  not  much  larger  than  the  can.  Some 
chicks  that  will  not  eat,  will  take  to  skim  milk,  and  it  gives  all  a  fine 
start.  Powdered  charcoal  is  kept  near  them  as  a  regulator.  The 
young  chicks  are  fed  every  two  hours.  The  first  week  they  get 
rolled  oats,  millet  seed  and  corn  cracked  very  fine.  Skim- 
milk  is  kept  before  them  all  the  time  and  the  milk  dishes    washed 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


51 


Piatt  7.— WIUJAM  E.  RICE,  Pigeon  Expert. 


52  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

twice  a  day.  Mr.  Duston  finds  it  pays  well  to  feed  skim  milk.  He 
is  able  to  buy  it  at  5  cents  for  8J  quarts.  The  sand  floor  of  the 
brooder  is  kept  clean. 

The  second  week  the  feed  is  about  the  same,   except  that  they 
are  fed  a  little  dough,  one-third  cornmeal,  two-thirds  bran   sea- 
soned with  a  little  salt  and  pepper  and  mixed  with  boiling  water. 
This  mash  is  made  semi-dry,  not  sloppy.  The  soft  food  and  grains 
are  fed  alternately.    The  third  week,  they  get  a  change  in  the  shape 
of  cracked  wheat  alternating  with  the  other  grains.    The  chicks  are 
allowed  to  run  on  the  ground  outside  when  they  are  a  week  old,  and 
after  the  second  week  they     go  out  every  day  unless  it  is  stormy. 
When  outdoors  during  the  cold  weather  they  are  made  to  exercise 
by  driving  them  around,  or  by  feeding  them  a  handful  of  millet  seed. 
The  program  of  the  third  week  is   continued    for  four  weeks 
as  follows :    Early  in  the  morning  a  feed  of  hard  grain,  then  a  feed 
of  chopped,  raw  potatoes  made  by  pulping  them  in  a  meat  chopper. 
A  little  later  is  given  a  feed  of  raw  cabbage  cut  in  strips.    At  nine 
o'clock  a  feed  of  scalded  mash  as  previously  described.    This  is  fed 
on  tin  plates  14  in.  in  diameter  and  f  in.  deep.     These  are  cleaned 
by  a  small  shovel  before  another  feed.     The  leavings  are  not  fed 
again  but  go  into  the  swill  tubs  for  the  pigs.    Two  hours  later  an- 
other feed  of  mash  is  given  and  again  at  one  o'clock  and  at  three 
o'clock.    There  are  plates  enough  so  that  all  the  chickens  have  their 
chance.    The  dish  is  taken  away  before  the  chickens  have  eaten  quite 
all  they  would  like.      The  last  feed  at  five  o'clock,  or  just  before 
dark,  is  fine  cracked  corn. 

When  this  program  has  been  continued  four  weeks,  the  chick- 
ens are  six  weeks  old,  and  they  must  be  finished  off  in  ten  days  or 
two  weeks  to  weigh  two  pounds  and  to  show  good  color  and  ap- 
pearance. To  get  the  most  color  and  flesh  in  the  least  time  the  corn 
meal  and  bran  mash  previously  described  is  thickened  by  adding 
all  cottonseed  meal  that  can  be  stirred  in,  also  adding  a  little  cheap 
molasses.  This  feed  will  give  a  fine  yellow  skin,  but  if  continued 
more  than  two  weeks  the  chickens  will  get  "off  their  feed,"  and 
lose  flesh  and  health. 

This  ration  should  only  be  given  to  finish  them  for  market. 
The  chickens  are  made  to  eat  all  of  it  they  possibly  can  and  not 
lose  their  appetite.  For  making  roasters  the  regular  feed  is  con- 
tinued up  to  the  last  two  weeks.  This  high  feeding  method  is  not 
considered  desirable  for  raising  breeding  stock,  but  only  for 
chickens  for  market. 

In  1892  we  gave  our  experience  in  Farm-Poultry,  Boston, 
Massachusetts,  from  which  we  make  the  following  extracts : 

An  incubator  may  hatch  ever  so  well,  and  a  brooder  do  the 
finest  kind  of  hovering,  yet  if  the  chicks  are  not  properly  fed,  there 
certainly  cannot  be  any  kind  of  success.  Good  feeding  tells.  There 
is  no  fixed  bill  of  fare,  and  in  taking  up  this  subject,  we  can  only 
give  our  own  experience,  and  what  we  have  observed  on  other  farms 
in  Hammonton. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  53 

As  is  well  known  the  chick  comes  from  the  shell  without  the 
least  bit  of  appetite.  Scientists  say  that  nature  has  given  it  the 
power  to  absorb  the  contents  of  the  yolk  prior  to  its  coming  out  of 
the  shell,  consequently  it  is  not  necessary  to  give  any  food  for  at 
least  twenty-four  hours.  Some  writers  say  thirty-six  hours  after 
hatching  is  early  enough  for  the  first  feed,  but  we  always  dish  up 
the  first  meal  after  they  are  a  day  and  a  night  old.  After  we  hatch 
out  the  chicks  we  put  them  in  a  nursery  where  we  keep  them  for 
the  first  ten  days  or  two  weeks.  After  that  they  are  removed  to  the 
regular  brooding-house.  Upon  the  floor  of  this  nursery  we  cover 
about  a  half  inch  of  bran,  so  that  when  the  chick  is  ready  to  eat, 
it  will  find  some  food  right  before  it.  Then,  in  a  little  trough  we 
place  rolled  oats,  or  pin-head  oatmeal,  and  subsequently  begin,  say 
about  a  week  afterwards,  a  mash  feed.  We  might  as  well  here  add 
that  we  also  give  stale  bread-crumbs  to  alterate  with  the  rolled 
oats,  until  they  have  their  stomachs  more  fortified  for  heavier  food. 
Some  of  the  broiler  men  in  this  town  grind  up,  or  finely  crack,  whole 
wheat,  which  they  feed  instead  of  the  rolled  oats.  We  like  both 
methods,  but  think  more  favorably  of  the  oats  diet.  We  also  give 
boiled  milk  as  a  diet. 

(Some  writers  think  that  for  the  first  few  days  it  is  best  not  to 
give  any  water.  We  differ.  Deprive  the  youngsters  of  something 
to  drink  and  they  will  fairly  gorge  themselves  when  allowed  to  get 
to  the  water.  We  do  not,  however,  start  with  water;  we  boil  milk, 
and  give  that  instead. 

There  used  to  be  an  opinion  that  hard-boiled  eggs  was  the  best 
food  to  start  with,  but  we  think  that  too  much  reliance  had  been 
placed  upon  that  diet.  It  has  been  proved  beyond  a  doubt  that  an 
excessive  use  of  hard-boiled  eggs  will  produce  bowel  troubles. 
There  can  be  no  harm  in  a  judicious  use  of  them,  but  we  have  found 
more  virtue  in  saturating  bread-crumbs  with  a  fresh  egg. 

Two  parts  of  bran,  and  one  part  of  corn  meal,  scalded  several 
hours  before  using,  is  an  excellent  food  after  the  chicks  are  a  week 
old.  But  two  parts  bran,  and  one  part  each  of  corn  meal  and  ground 
wheat  is  better.  A  little  of  meat  scraps — say  a  handful  to  a  pail  of 
the  above  mixture — should  also  be  added. 

After  two  weeks  of  age,  cracked  wheat  and  cracked  corn  makes 
a  substantial  meal.  From  the  start,  grit  of  some  kind  must  be 
within  reach.  Some  use  fine  flint ;  some  finely  cracked  oyster  shells  : 
and  some  fine  gravel.  It  matters  not  what  kind  is  used.  Powdered 
charcoal  should  also  be  kept  in  a  little  box  in  the  pen  so  the  chicks 
can  help  themselves. 

Green  food,  as  chopped  up  onion  tops,  or  cabbage  leaves,  are 
very  beneficial.  Lettuce  can  be  raised  early  in  the  season  in  hot- 
beds, and  a  better  and  more  tender  plant  cannot  be  found.  Where 
greens  are  scarce,  roast  potatoes,  cut  into  halves,  furnish  a  grand 
substitute ;  and  even  when  greens  are  fed,  it  gives  an  extra  treat. 

Corn  meal,  in  some  form  or  other,  is  the  ''staff"  upon  which  to 
grow  good  broilers.  It  can  be  used  in  regular  johnny  cakes,  or 
what  is  known  as  southern  corn  bread. 


54  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

We  might  add,  also,  that  we  never  give  milk  to  the  chicks 
until  it  is  boiled.  There  is  less  likelihood  of  having  any  evil  effects 
from  it.  We  have  known  of  bad  cases  of  bowel  troubles  coming 
from  feeding  fresh  milk. 

George  W.  Pressey,  of  Hammonton,  who,  with  the  assistance 
of  his  two  daughters,  raised  and  marketed  nearly  5,000  chicks  in  a 
^  single  season,  used  this  plan  of  feeding: 

When  the  chickens  are  twenty-four  hours  old,  feed  them  with 
baked  corn  cake  made  as  follows :  Three  quarts  corn  meal,  one 
quart  wheat  middlings,  one  quart  of  meat  meal.  Mix  quite  stiff  with 
water  or  skimmed  milk,  in  which  have  been  mixed  four  tablespoon- 
fuls  of  vinegar,  and  two  teaspoonfuls  of  soda.  Bake,  and  when 
cold,  crumble  fine  and  feed  for  the  first  week  all  they  will  eat,  or 
during  the  time  they  are  kept  in  a  warm  room,  which  must  never  be 
over  ten  days,  or  they  will  sicken  and  die  for  want  of  pure  outdoor 
air.  For  the  first  week  they  should  be  fed  once  a  day  with  mashed 
potatoes,  given  plenty  of  water  to  drink  and  plenty  of  coarse  sand. 
The  food  for  outdoors  is  two  parts  corn,  one  part  wheat,  and  one  part 
oats,  ground  together  quite  fine.  To  each  ten  quart  pailful  of  this 
mixture  add  one  quart  of  wheat  bran,  half  a  cup  of  pulverized  bone 
meal,  one  pint  of  middlings,  and  a  pint  of  meat  meal.  Mix  rather 
dry  with  hot  water,  and  leave  for  two  hours  before  feeding,  to  give 
it  a  chance  to  swell.  With  this  food,  he  also,  once  a  week,  gives 
a  half  teaspoonful  of  salt,  and  in  cold  weather  a  quarter  teaspoonful 
of  red  pepper ;  and  once  or  twice  a  week  he  adds  a  spoonful  of  sul- 
phur; and  about  as  often,  mixes  in  the  drinking  water  for  the  day. 
a  spoonful  of  Douglas  Mixture  to  every  one  hundred  chickens.  Pow- 
dered charcoal  is  kept  before  them  all  the  time. 

At  first  it  is  best  to  feed  the  chicks  every  two  hours,  all  they  will 
eat  up  clean.  After  about  two  or  three  weeks  old  they  can  be  con- 
fined to  three  meals  a  day.  The  first  feed  of  the  day  should  be  given 
at  daybreak,  and  the  last  feed  a  little  before  they  are  ready  to  creep 
in  their  broockrs  for  the  night. 

Great  care  must  be  taken  in  the  preparation  of  the  food.  It  must 
not  be  sloppy,  neither  hot.  It  should  be  just  moist  enough  so  as  to 
be  easily  crumbled,  and  warm. 

Food  must  be  given  in  troughs.  If  thrown  upon  the  floor  it 
will  be  trodden  under  foot  and  wasted. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  methods  of  feeding  herein 
given  are  for  broilers  alone.  In  raising  birds  for  breeding  purposes, 
more  attention  must  be  paid  to  growth  of  bone  and  muscle  than  fat. 

With  regularity  in  feeding,  and  a  regular  warmth  in  the 
brooders,  two-thirds  of  the  troubles  in  raising  chicks  can  be  avoided. 
As  brooder-raised  birds  are  free  from  lice,  and  are  never  troubled 
with  gapes,  it  shows  that  if  there  is  a  failure  in  the  method,  it  must 
be  though  the  instrumentality  of  the  man.  As  we  have  said  before, 
good  brooders  and  good  food  are  everything.  It  is  much  easier  to 
hatch  the  eggs  than  raise  the  chicks. 

For  several  years  we  have  given  a  test  of  F.  P.  C.  Chick  Manna 
as  the  exclusive  food  for  young  chicks  up  to  ten  days  of  age.    We 


Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  55 

have  found  it  excellent,  it  being-  a  regular  "Mellin's  Food"  for  them. 
Just  what  this  Chick  Manna  contains  we  do  not  know,  but  we  do 
know  that  by  its  use  we  have  had  stronger  chicks,  quicker  growth, 
and  less  loss  than  by  anything  else  that  we  ever  fed.  This  is  a 
rather  strong  testimonial,  and  it  is  given  without  the  knowledge  of 
the  manufacturer,  but  we  deem  it  our  duty  to  speak  of  a  meritorious 
irticle  when  we  find  one. 

In  an  experiment  made  last  year  with  Spratts  Patent  Poultry 
Meal,  we  also  had  excellent  results.  The  article  in  particular  that 
we  used  was  Spratt's  Chick  Meal,  No.  5,  which  is  a  cooked  food 
manufactured  by  Spratt's  Patent  for  the  special  purpose  of  rearing 
young  chicks  from  the  egg  to  maturity,  but  in  the  broiler  business 
:ts  use  is  recommended  for  a  few  days  or  say  until  the  end  of  the 
third  week,  after  which  its  use  may  be  gradually  discontinued,  but 
this  is  only  on  account  of  the  expense. 

In  a  personal  letter  to  the  writer,  T.  Farrer  Rackham,  East 
Orange,  N.  J.,  says : 

"It  is  all  very  well  for  the  mixed  grain  advocates  to  claim  that  a 
young  chick  does  not  want  cooked  food,  but  twenty  years  of  prac- 
tical experience  has  proved  to  me  that  you  can  rear  a  heavier  per- 
centage of  better  and  bigger  chicks  if  they  are  started  on  a  cooked 
food,  than  you  can  under  any  other  circumstances,  and  if  there  is 
any  living  man  that  doesn't  believe  it,  I  am  willing  to  enter  into  a 
contest  with  him,  and  can  back  my  opinion  pretty  heavily  before  I 
stop.  Of  course,  I  feed  grains  alternating  the  feeds :  Spratt's  at 
one  feed  and  the  grain  at  the  next. 

"The  man  who  mixes  together  a  certain  number  of  dried  grains 
claims  that  these  are  the  foods  and  that  they  do  better  on  them. 
This  is  all  buncombe.  There  is  just  enough  truth  in  it  to  bear  out 
the  old  adage :  'little  knowledge  is  a  dangerous  thing.' 

"Young  chicks  in  their  wild  and  natural  condition  do  not  eat 
cooked  foods,  but  then  they  are  not  hatcked  during  the  months  of 
October  and  March,  and  they  are  hatched  at  a  time  when  the  sur- 
roundings are  full  of  things  that  can  only  be  imitated  by  cooked 
foods." 

Some  interesting  data  on  the  subject  of  feeding  chicks,  is  also 
^iven  in  the  report  of  the  Maine  Experiment  Station,  as  follows: 

"For  feed  for  young  chicks  we  make  bread  by  mixing  three  parts 
cornmeal,  one  part  wheat  bran,  and  one  part  wheat  middlings  or 
Hour,  with  skim  milk  or  water,  mixing  it  very  dry,  and  salting  as 
usual  for  bread.  It  is  baked  thoroughly,  and  when  well  done,  if  it 
is  dry  enough  so  as  to  crumble,  it  is  broken  up  and  dried  out  in  the 
oven,  and  then  ground  in  a  mortar  or  mill.  The  infertile  eggs  are 
hard  boiled  and  ground,  shell  and  all,  in  a  sausage  mill.  About  one 
part  of  ground  egg  and  four  parts  of  the  bread  crumbs  are  rubbed 
together  until  the  egg  is  well  divided.  This  bread  makes  up  about 
one-half  of  the  food  of  the  chicks  until  they  are  five  or  six  weeks  old. 
Eggs  are  always  used  with  it  for  the  first  one  or  two  weeks,  and 
then  fine  sifted  beef  scrap  is  mixed  with  the  bread. 


56  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

"It  may  be  that  the  bread  is  not  necessary  and  that  something 
else  is  just  as  good.  We  have  tried  many  other  foods,  including 
several  of  the  most  highly  advertised  prepared  dry  chicken  foods, 
but  as  yet  have  found  nothing  that  gives  us  as  good  health  and 
growth  as  the  bread  fed  in  connection  with  dry  broken  grains. 

"When  the  chicks  are  first  brought  to  the  brooders  bread 
crumbs  are  sprinkled  on  the  floor  of  the  brooder,  among  fine  grit,  and 
in  this  way  they  learn  to  eat,  taking  in  grit  and  food  at  the  same 
time.  After  the  first  day  the  food  is  given  in  tin  plates,  four  to  each 
brooder.  The  plates  have  low  edges,  and  the  chicks  go  onto  them 
and  find  the  food  readily.  After  they  have  had  the  food  before  them 
the  first  one  or  two  weeks,  the  plates  are  removed.  As  they  have 
not  spilled  much  of  it,  they  have  little  left  to  lunch  on  except  what 
they  scratch  for.  In  the  course  of  a  few  days  light  wooden  troughs 
are  substituted  for  the  plates.  The  bottom  of  the  trough  is  a  strip 
of  half  inch  board,  two  feet  long  and  three  inches  wide.  Laths  are 
nailed  around  the  edges.  The  birds  are  fed  four  times  a  day  in  these 
troughs  until  they  outgrow  them,  as  follows:  Bread  and  egg  or 
scrap  early  in  the  morning ;  at  half  past  nine  o'clock  dry  grain,  either 
pin  head  oats,  crushed  wheat,  millet  seed  or  cracked  corn.  At  one 
o'clock  dry  grain  again,  and  the  last  feed  of  the  day  is  of  the  bread 
with  egg  or  scrap. 

"Between  the  four  feeds  in  the  pans  or  troughs,  millet  seed,  pin 
head  oats  and  fine  cracked  corn,  and  later  whole  wheat,  are  scat- 
tered in  the  chaff  on  the  floor  for  the  chicks  to  scratch  for.  This 
makes  them  exercise,  and  care  is  taken  that  they  do  not  find  the 
food  too  easily. 

"One  condition  is  made  imperative  in  our  feeding.  The  food  is 
never  to  remain  in  the  troughs  more  than  five  minutes  before  the 
troughs  are  cleaned  or  removed.  This  insures  sharp  appetites  at 
meal  time,  and  guards  against  inactivity  which  comes  from  over- 
feeding. 

"Charcoal,  granulated  bone,  oyster  shell  and  sharp  grit  are 
always  kept  by  them,  as  well  as  clean  water.  Mangolds  are  cut  into 
slices,  which  they  soon  learn  to  peck.  When  the  grass  begins  to 
grow  they  are  able  to  get  green  food  from  the  yards.  If  the  small 
yards  are  worn  out  before  they  are  moved  to  the  range,  green  cut 
clover  or  rape  is  fed  to  them. 

"After  the  chickens  are  moved  to  the  range  they  are  fed  in  the 
same  manner,  except  that  the  morning  and  evening  feed  is  made  of 
corn  meal,  middlings  and  wheat  bran,  to  which  one-tenth  as  much 
beef  scrap  is  added.  The  other  two  feeds  are  of  wheat  and  cracked 
corn.  One  year  we  fed  double  the  amount  of  scrap  all  through  the 
growing  season  and  had  the  April  and  May  pullets  well  developed 
and  laying  through  September  and  October.  To  our  sorrow  they 
neatly  all  molted  in  December,  and  that  month  and  January  were 
nearly  bare  of  eggs." 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  57 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Drooping  Wings  in  Chicks — Roofing  the  Brooder  Houses — Bowel 
Troubles  in  Young  Chicks— Dressing  for  Market— Raising  Stock 
Birds. 

Complaint  is  time  and  again  received  that  the  wings  of  some 
of  the  chicks  being  grown  for  broilers  grow  too  fast,  causing  the 
birds  to  droop  and  die.  We  wrote  to  a  number  of  poultrymen  on 
the  subject  and  secured  the  following  replies: 

F.  Bause,  New  Berlin,  Pa.;  "I  pull  the  large  wing  feathers  as 
soon  as  the  chicks  droop." 

Aug.  D.  Arnold,  Dillsburg,  Pa. :  "I  find  the  use  of  sweet  milk 
the  best  preventative  for  drooping  wings  in  chicks.  Give  milk  in- 
stead of  water  to  drink." 

Whiting  Farm,  Holyoke,  Mass. :  "We  do  not  consider  it  neces- 
sary to  clip  the  wings,  as  the  chickens  will  do  fully  better  without 
this.  Where  such  a  course  is  necessary,  the  food  ration  is  usually 
at  fault,  or  other  conditions." 

W.  Theo.  Wittman,  Allentown,  Pa. :  "Most  people  believe  that 
it  is  the  wing  feathers  that  grow  too  fast,  or  are  abnormally  de- 
veloped. This  is  not  it ;  the  chick  has  not  grown  fast  enough.  Hence^ 
anything  that  stunts  the  growth  helps  to  develope  this  wing 
trouble,  and  in  most  cases  it  is  a  matter  of  the  wrong  kind  of  feed. 
Chicks  from  eggs  laid  by  inbred  or  closely  confined  stock  are  apt 
to  come  that  way." 

W.  W.  Kulp,  Pottstown,  Pa. :  "I  cut  (never  pull)  the  wing 
feathers  and  tail.  I  cut  them  before  they  droop,  as  it  is  easier  to- 
prevent  than  cure.  If  you  pull  them  you  might  injure  the  socket 
where  the  feather  grows.  A  new  feather  will  grow  in  the  socket, 
but  it  will  generally  be  without  color.  Nature  seems  to  say  it  is 
hard  work  to  grow  a  feather  after  such  treatment,  without  putting 
it  in  color." 

C.  E.  Howell,  Elmira,  N.  Y. :  "We  make  it  a  practice  to  clip 
off  the  ends  of  the  flight  feathers  on  all  chicks  when  they  are  about 
ten  days  old,  and  think  it  is  a  great  help  in  a  general  way,  for  it 
retards  the  growth  of  the  wings.  However,  if  the  wings  grow  faster 
than  the  remainder  of  the  chick,  there  is  always  a  cause.  The  three 
principal  causes  of  the  trouble  are,  ist,their  feed;  2d,  improper  heat 
or  exposure;  3d,  lack  of  exercise.  With  a  close  watch  on  these 
essential  points,  very  little  trouble  will  be  found  with  the  chick's 
wings." 


58  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

George  H.  Northup,  Raceville,  N.  Y. :  "Feed  often  and  regu- 
larly on  nourishing  food,  not  more  than  the  chicks  will  eat  readily. 
Accustom  them  to  a  variety  of  foods  as  early  as  possible.  When 
chicks  get  weak  I  have  found  clear  cornmeal,  moistened  with  raw 
egg  (just  enough  egg  to  make  it  crumbly)  excellent  to  revive  them, 
but  think  it  would  not  be  good  for  a  steady  food.  I  do  not  have 
any  trouble  with  chicks  getting  weak  if  they  are  well  fed,  regularly. 
They  grow  rapidly,  but  are  so  hardy  that  they  do  not  weaken.  I 
think  that  when  the  wings  of  chicks  outgrow  some  other  parts  of 
the  body,  it  indicates  a  state  of  partial  starvation.  Small  chicks  need 
more  carbonaceous  food  to  keep  up  warmth  and  vitality,  than  mature 
fowls,  proportionally.  Therefore,  one  need  not  feed  sparingly  of 
cornmeal  or  cracked  corn,  but  as  I  said  before  a  mixed  diet  is 
needed." 

An  anonymous  writer  makes  a  number  of  good  points,  as  fol- 
lows :  "Is  it  the  rapid  growth  of  the  wing  feathers  which  cause  the 
chick  to  droop?  Is  it  not  that  the  body  fails  to  develop  as  it  should? 
Don't  you  think  there  is  something  wrong  in  the  management  that 
produces  such  forlorn  specimens  of  chickhood?  Some  people  clip 
their  wings.  Why.  I  cannot  imagine.  If  they  are  too  heavy  for 
their  owners  to  carry  around  in  their  normal  position,  the  best  plan 
in  my  opinion  is  to  dispose  of  the  chickens;  they  won't  amount  to 
much  if  they  do  live  to  maturity.  Compare  that  chick  whose  wings 
hang  loosely  at  its  side,  with  one  who  carries  them  folded  close  to 
its  body  Take  them  in  your  hands,  notice  the  difference  in  the 
weight,  feel  how  sharp  and  boney  is  the  breast  of  one,  and  how 
plump  the  other.  Look  at  their  legs — it  will  take  both  of  the  one 
to  equal  in  size  the  strong,  thick  shank  of  the  other.  How  weak 
the  bird  is;  it  scarcely  moves  when  you  grasp  it.  And  the  other: 
Why  you  can  feel  every  muscle  struggling  in  your  hands.  It  is 
full  of  life  and  strength.  Give  them  their  liberty:  The  droopy  one 
goes  a  little  way  and  stands  exhausted.  Those  dreadful  wings  seem 
to  bear  him  down  to  the  ground.  The  other  chick  darts  from  your 
hands  the  moment  you  relax  your  hold,  and  flies  from  the  restraint 
which  was  so  hateful  to  his  vigorous  little  body.  Don't  you  think 
it  would  be  cruel  to  prolong  the  existence  of  a  chick  so  puny  that  it 
cannot  sustain  the  weight  of  its  own  feathers?  It  certainly  will  not 
pay  to  raise  it." 

W.  A.  Penfield,  Waterville,  N.  Y. :  "Prevent  by  proper  ration 
of  animal  food." 

M.  A.  Summers,  Lewisburg,  Ky. :  "When  wing  feathers  grow 
too  fast  I  trim  them  with  a  pair  of  scissors." 

W.  H.  Card,  Bristol,  Conn. :  "I  out-breed,  and  have  no  trouble 
that  way." 

J.  A.  Ainge,  Dover,  N.  J. :  "When  three  weeks  old  I  cut  off  the 
wing  feathers  and  find  it  successful." 

B.  A.  R.  Stocker,  Wyoma,  W.  Va. :  "Trim  off  the  long  feathers ; 
give  bone  meal." 

C.  A.  Young,  Prescott,  Wis. :  "It  has  seemed  to  me  that  this 
condition  occurs  most  frequently,  if  not  altogether,  with  those  chicks 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  59 

that  seem  below  par  in  vitality  when  hatched.  All  the  chicks  I  have 
this  season  were  incubator-hatched,  and  the  earlier  ones  have  done 
much  better  in  this  respect.  The  last  hatching  appeared  deficient 
in  vitality,  did  not  grow  well,  while  many  of  them  developed  this 
wing  peculiarity  and  soon  died." 

W.  J.  Gordon,  Pickering,  Ont.,  Canada:  "Drooping  of  wings 
is  not  caused  by  overgrowth,  but  by  improper  treatment,  such  as 
crowding  at  night,  small  range,  poor  feeding  and  lice." 


There  being  a  difference  of  opinions  regarding  the  best  roofing 
for  a  brooder  house,  we  directed  inquiries  to  a  number  of  poultry- 
men,  with  the  following  result : 

Henry  Nicolai,  Hammonton,  N.  J. :  "My  experience  has  taught 
me  that  shingles  are  the  cheapest  and  best  in  the  end.  They  will 
last  many  years  longer  by  giving  the  roof  a  coat  of  paint  costing 
about  one  dollar  per  gallon,  and  using  No.  3,  18-inch  cedar 
shingles.  One  thousand  shingles  will  cover  about  145  square  feet ; 
one  gallon  of  paint  will  cover  250  square  feet." 

C.  E.  Howell,  Elmira,  N.  Y. :  "I  consider  shingles  the  best 
roofing,  but  do  not  use  them  unless  the  house  can  be  ceiled  over- 
head with  matched  lumber.  This  makes  a  warm,  dry  covering,  and 
shuts  off  the  overhead  draughts.  The  cheapest  roof  I  have  is  build- 
ing paper  well  covered  with  tar  and  gravel,  but  it  needs  renewal  of 
the  tar  quite  often." 

George  G.  Harley,  Hammonton,  N.  J. :  "My  experience  with 
roofing  is  that  either  cedar  or  cypress  shingles  is  the  best  for  either 
a  brooding  or  a  poultry  house.  The  Red  Rope  Neponset  paper, 
nowever,  is  a  very  good  substitute  if  it  is  put  on  right.  It  should 
have  one-third  lap  and  painted  before  the  strips  are  put  on.  I  use 
I  in.  half  round  strips,  and  place  them  two  feet  apart  on  top  of 
the  Neponset  after  it  is  painted.  If  the  strips  are  put  on  before 
painting,  the  paper  will  rot  under  the  strips.  But  I  prefer  shingles 
to  any  substitute." 

J.  E.  Stevenson,  Columbus,  N.  J.:  "The  best  is  probably  cedar 
shingles,  and  they  may  be  really  the  cheapest  in  the  end.  The 
cheapest  and  best  for  a  cheap  roof,  that  I  have  found  after  several 
years'  experience  with  the  different  roofing  felts,  is  ordinary  burlap. 
Tack  it  on  the  roof  smoothly,  and  coat  well  with  tar  and  sand.  This 
will  be  found  much  more  satisfactory  than  the  majority  of  felt  roofs, 
as  it  does  not  crack  nor  blow  off,  and  if  kept  well  tarred  and  sanded 
will  last  for  years.  Old  bags  will  answer  the  purpose  providing 
they  have  no  holes  in  them,  or  the  holes  are  patched,  though  new 
burlap  would  be  less  work  to  put  on  smoothly  and  can  be  bought 
cheaply." 

Ezra  Cornell,  Ithaca,  N.  Y. :  "I  suppose  that  there  are  some 
kind  of  roofing  papers  that  are  cheap  and  will  last  for  some  time, 
but  I  have  never  considered  them.  My  houses  are  all  shingled  and 
are  perfectly  satisfactory.  They  are  waterproof,  and  at  the  same 
time  sufficiently  open  to  allow  all  gases  to  escape.  With  the  shin- 
gle roof  I  do  not  consider  a  roof  ventilator  necessary.    Besides  these 


60  Money   in   Broilers    and    Sqnabs. 

qualities  a  good  shingle  roof  will  last  for  years,  is  cooler  than  almost 
any  other  roof  in  summer,  and  sufficiently  tight  in  winter,  as  the 
shingles  shrink  in  hot,  dry  weather,  making  the  roof  open  or  porousr 
and  swell  in  damp,  cooler  weather,  making  it  tight.  On  the  whole, 
I  think  it  cannot  be  beaten." 

F.  Bause,  New  Berlin,  Pa. :  "The  cheapest  roof  I  have  is  the 
heaviest  quality  tar  paper  on  rough  boards,  coated  with  a  good,  coal 
tar  cement." 

William  H.  Child,  Glenside,  Pa. :  "I  have  never  used  anything 
but  ordinary  black  roofing  felt.  It  has  always  answered  satisfac- 
torily, and  I  should  use  it  again.  When  it  gets  worn,  I  put  a  new 
lot  right  over  the  old." 

W.  Theo.  Wittman,  Allentown,  Pa. :  "The  best  and  cheapest 
roofing  for  a  poultry  house  is  tar  or  roofing  paper  well  painted 
with  hot  tar,  and  annually  painted  late  in  autumn.  This  makes 
the  roof  at  its  best  when  most  needed.  If  the  tar  is  applied  in 
spring  or  summer,  the  sun  will  rapidly  evaporate  it  and  make  the 
roof  thin.  With  such  a  roof  the  roosting  room  (of  the  hen  house) 
only  needs  to  be  ceiled  with  matched  lumber  (as  should  also  be 
the  brooding  house)  leaving  an  air-space,  as  one-inch  boards 
covered  with  paper  in  zero  weather  makes  the  roof  cold,  and  chills 
the  whole  house." 

W.  M.  Rand,  Franklin,  Ind. :  "I  don't  consider  there  is  any  good 
whatever  in  cheapness  of  any  kind  in  the  chicken  or  any  other  busi- 
ness. Cheapness  in  the  start  means  unnecessary  expense  in  the  end. 
I  built  a  brooder  house  on  the  cheap  plan  to  start  with.  It  proved 
a  failure,  and  since  then  have  built  it  all  over.  This  is  where  the 
unnecessary  expense  comes  in.  If  built  right  at  first,  there  would 
have  been  no  unnecessary  expense  of  re-building.  I  first  built  my 
house  with  three-inch  battens,  three  inches  apart,  with  shingles  on 
top  for  a  roof.  The  consequence  was,  when  the  wind  blew  strong, 
there  was  no  such  thing  as  keeping  up  heat.  A  roof  that  will  shed 
rain  won't  keep  out  wind  unless  properly  built.  It  is  just  as  essen- 
tial to  keep  out  wind  in  a  brooder  or  chicken  house  as  to  keep  out 
rain.  My  house  has  a  hip  roof,  and  two  years  ago  I  put  tarred 
paper  on  the  north  side  and  it  kept  out  both  wind  and  rain.  My 
plan  is :  Put  on  good  sheeting  and  cover  with  three-ply  tarred 
roofing,  and  paint  once  or  twice  a  year,  and  you  will  have  the  best 
roof  in  existence.  With  us  the  cost  of  3-inch  batten,  per  square  is 
75c,  and  good  shingles  $2.50  per  square.  Cost  of  putting  on  shin- 
gles are  about  $1  per  square ;  total,  $4.25.  Three-ply  tarred  paper, 
per  square,  costs  $1.50,  good  sheeting,  $1.50.  Putting  on  sheeting 
paper  and  painting,  $1.00;  total,  $4.00  per  square." 

Charles  A.  French,  Sandypoint,  Me. :  "Cedar  shingles  and 
sheathing  paper." 

Another  correspondent :  "Shingles  over  sheathing  paper.  No 
tearing  off  or  tar  running  off  in  hot  weather.  Such  a  roof  is  about 
the  cheapest  in  the  end,  as  it  requires  no  further,  attention  for  a 
number  of  years." 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


61 


62  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

A  Canadian  correspondent:  "In  my  experience  there  is  nothing 
that  will  beat  the  gravel  roof  for  our  climate  (Canada.)  If  it  is  well 
put  on  at  first,  it  will  last  longer  and  be  warmer  than  any  other  roof. 
But  it  should  always  slant  to  the  North,  and  no  more  than  a  half- 
inch  fall  to  the  front.  I  make  mine  three-eighths  and  find  it  about 
right.  Of  course  it  will  be  warmer  in  Summer,  but  I  leave  the  doors 
and  windows  out ,  and  that  leaves  it  sufficiently  cool  at  night,  using 
wire  screans  to  keep  out  vermin." 

Emory  E.  Banks,  Crittenden,  N.  Y. :  "Prefer  two  thicknesses 
of  hemlock  boards,  with  lining  paper  between  and  batten  or  ship- 
Ian  lumber  on  the  outside.  Next  preference  is  Neponset  roofing 
with  Neponset  lining  on  under  side,  and  ke'pt  painted  or  tarred." 

William  Barry,  Park  Ridge,  N.  J. :  "I  prefer  a  tin  roof.  I  tried 
the  Neponset,  but  a  heavy  hail  storm  cut  it  badly." 

E.  H.  Williams,  Coldwater,  Mich. :  "I  use  Neponset  Red  Rope 
and  find  it  very  satisfactory  and  cheap." 

W.  M.  Shaw,  Swissdale,  Pa. :  "The  best  roofing  for  poultry 
houses  is  composed,  first,  of  either  rough  or  dressed  pine  boards, 
beaded,  or  mortised,  same  as  flooring  boards,  forced  close  together, 
and  on  top  of  this  place  one  layer  of  No.  2  or  3  felt  roofing,  heavily 
tarred  once  every  year  or  two.  This  is  a  roof  for  warmth  in  Winter 
and  cool  in  Summer." 

•  W.  W.  Kulp,  Pottstown,  Pa. :  "I  use  mostly  Neponset.  It 
makes  a  good  roof,  and  lasts  about  20  years.  Felt  roofing  I  would 
use,  but  it  costs  too  much  trouble ;  always  leaking.  Tin  is  fine  but 
costly." 

C.  E.  White,  Fox  Chase,  Pa. :  "I  use  nothing  but  Swan's 
Standard  Roofing,  and  find  it  very  satisfactory.  Before  building 
my  house  I  visited  many  prominent  poultry  farms  in  Massachusetts 
and  New  York  state,  to  pick  up  whatever  points  I  could  that  would 
be  of  value,  and  this  was  one  of  the  most  valuable  ones.  I  saw  at 
James  Rankin's  farm  roofing  of  this  kind  that  had  been  in  use  for 
12  or  13  years." 

By  the  Editor:  We  are  using  Paroid  roofing,  manufactured  by 
F.  W.  Bird  &  Son,  East  Walpole,  Mass.,  and  find  it  strictly  first- 
class. 

Geo.  H.  Northrup,  Raceville,  N.  Y. :  "I  find  that  a  slate  roof 
gives  the  best  satisfaction  of  all.  It  costs  more  at  the  start,  but 
when  once  put  on  will  last  as  long  as  the  building  stands.  I  know 
of  slate  roofs  -which  have  been  on  as  long  as  50  years,  and  are  as 
good  now  as  when  first  laid." 


Bowel  troubles  have  been  the  cause  of  considerable  loss  among 
brooder  chicks.  The  following  symposium  contains  good  advice  on 
the  subject : 

William  E.  Anderson,  Belvidere,  N.  J.:  "I  use  the  following 
prescription  furnished  me  by  Dr.  P.  T.  Woods :  Mix  a  little  red 
oxide  of  iron  (Venetian  red)  in  drinking:  water  for  a  few  days." 

P.  F.  Daniel,  Atlanta,  Ga. :  "Locate  the  cause  (for  there  is  a. 
cause)  and  avoid  it.     Feed  a  well  balanced  ration.     My  experience 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  63 

is  that  the  bowels  will  regulate  themselves  unless  the  chicks  have 
been  severely  chilled." 

Emory  E.  Banks,  Crittenden,  N.  J. :  "My  remedy  for  diarrhoea 
in  brooder  chicks  is  to  feed  more  hard  boiled  eggs,  scalded  milk, 
wheat,  germ,  etc.,  dropping  animal  meal  and  feeding  less  or  no  corn- 
meal,  green  food,  etc.,  as  the  case  may  be.  When  costive  I  reverse 
the  order.  I  have  had  more  trouble  with  the  latter  than  the 
former." 

A.  De  R.  Meares,  Hyattsville,  Md. :  "Bran  before  the  little 
chicks  all  the  time." 

J.  W.  McCarty,  Windsor,  Vt. :  "Boiled  milk  and  more  dried 
food  than  generally  fed." 

W.  J.  Gordon,  Pickering,  Ont. :  "Proper  heat — not  too  hot  nor 
too  cold.  Put  horse  chestnuts  in  the  drinking  water,  and  see  that 
the  water  is  kept  cool  and  fresh.  Feed  dry  rolled  oats,  dry  bran, 
hard  boiled  eggs  and  plenty  of  grit  and  green  food.  Have  a  big 
run." 

H.  S.  Thompson,  Stratford,  Conn. :  "Have  plenty  of  heat  for 
the  first  week.  Avoid  crowding — and  kill  the  cripples  and  weak- 
lings that  start  the  crowding.  Tincture  of  asafoetida  in  the  drink- 
ing water  is  good." 

Matt.  G.  Robson,  Port  Leyden,  N.  Y. :  "My  wife  gives  the 
chicks  a  little  black  pepper  in  milk,  but  one  must  be  careful  that 
too  much  is  not  given,  as  it  may  injure  the  liver.  Never  had  any 
trouble  that  way,  as  I  watch  the  chicks  closely  and  change  feed  if 
I  notice  anything  wrong." 

Irving  C.  Hutchins,  Rochester,  N.  Y. :  "Have  had  but  little 
trouble  with  bowel  difficulty  in  young  brooder  chicks.  The  best 
preventative  that  I  know  of  is  to  keep  fresh  water  before  them  all 
of  the  time,  feed  pin-head  oat  meal  dry,  furnish  them  with  plenty  of 
grit  and  a  fair  amount  of  green  stuff,  as  well  as  to  give  them  a 
chance  to  run." 

B.  A.  Stoker,  Sebastopal,  Calif. :  "Change  the  food.  Give  bran, 
coarse  cornmeal.  Watch  very  carefully  the  temperature  of  the 
brooder  and  room.     My  first  feed  is  rolled  oats  for  several  days." 

Harry  C.  Nunan,  Cape  Porpoise,  Me.:  "Boiled  rice  with  me 
has  always  given  good  results.     Feed  sparingly." 

W'illiam  A.  Penfield,  Waterville,  N.  J.:  "Keep  dry  and  warm; 
feed  dry  food — Johnny  cake,  cracked  wheat  and  corn,  plenty  of 
charcoal,  grit  and  pure  water  at  all  times.  But  let  them  get  hungry 
before  feeding  grains.  This  is  also  a  preventative  which  is  better 
than  the  cure." 


In  preparing  broilers  for  market,  great  care  must  be  taken  in 
the  work.  Properly  dressed  carcasses  are  attractive  and  find  a  reach- 
sale.  A  writer  in  Farm  Journal  says,  in  dressing,  chicks  will  lose 
about  12  per  cent  or  about  nine  pounds  to  the  hundred-weight.  For 
at  least  a  week  before  slaughtering  they  should  be  fed  on  corn  meal 
and  milk  almost  exclusively.  Other  food  should  be  given  as  a 
variety  to  keep  up  their  appetite.      Corn  meal  is  the  cheapest  fat- 


64  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

tening  substance  that  can  be  supplied,  and  gives,  also,  a  yellowish 
cast  to  the  flesh  which  is  very  desirable.  Where  there  are  fowls 
or  other  chicks  to  interfere  it  is  well  to  pen  those  to  be  fattened  in 
a  clean,  shady  yard. 

As  dry  picked  poultry  commands  the  best  prices  it  is  advisable 
to  dress  broilers  in  this  way  if  it  can  be  done  without  inflicting  un- 
necessary torture  upon  the  birds.  In  opposition  to  many  kind- 
hearted  folks  who  have  drawn  harrowing  pictures  of  hanging  human 
beings  up  by  the  heels  and  pulling  the  hair  out  by  the  roots  and 
have  drawn  other  horrible  comparisons,  we  maintain  that  killing 
and  picking  dry  is  no  more  cruel  than  killing  and  picking  after 
scalding.  Whether  the  bird  suffers  prolonged  pain  or  not  depends 
on  the  manner  of  killing  and  not  on  the  manner  of  picking. 

There  is  much  to  be  learned  about  dressing  poultry.  It  is 
useless  to  send  fowls  to  market  unless  fat  and  neatly  dressed.  At- 
tractiveness is  an  important  feature  in  selling,  and  great  loss  fre- 
quently occurs  from  lack  of  it.  In  selling  to  local  dealers  use  the 
same  care  in  dressing  that  would  be  taken  if  shipping  to  a  distant 
commission  merchant  is  the  advice  of  a  writer  in  The  American 
Agriculturist,  who  says :  Fowls  look  best  when  dry  picked, 
especially  if  fat  and  plump.  If  they  are  not  in  fine  condition,  it  is 
best  to  scald  them  before  picking.  When  dry  picked,  the  natural 
firmness  of  the  flesh  remains,  and  poultry  for  general  markets 
should  be  so  prepared  if  possible.  Let  the  fowls  go  without  food 
for  12  or  24  hours  before  killing,  so  that  nothing  will  remain  in  the 
crop  to  sour.  Kill  by  severing  the  veins  of  the  neck  or  inside  the 
mouth.  This  can  be  quickly  and  painlessly  done  with  a  sharp  knife. 
Hang  the  fowls  by  the  feet  to  bleed  and  pick  while  the  bodies  are 
warm,  using  great  care  not  to  tear  the  skin.  Leave  the  head  and 
feet  on  and  do  not  remove  the  crop  or  intestines.  Wash  in  cold 
water,  wipe  dry  and  hang  up  by  the  feet  in  a  cool  place.  For  scald- 
ing, heat  the  water  about  to  the  boiling  point.  Holding  the  fowl 
by  the  head  and  feet,  dip  the  body  into  the  water  three  or  four  times. 
If  the  head  touches  the  water,  it  will  give  the  eyes  a  shrunken  ap- 
pearance. Buyers  are  naturally  suspicious,  and  if  the  eyes  are 
sunken  they  think  the  fowl  has  been  sick.  When  the  feathers  and 
pinfeathers  have  been  removed,  immerse  the  fowl  in  scalding  water 
for  four  or  five  seconds  and  then  dip  immediately  into  ice  cold  water 
to  give  it  a  plump  appearance.  If  the  head  is  cut  off,  turn  the  skin 
back  of  trifle,  cut  off  the  bone,  and  drawing  the  skin  forward  tie  it 
neatly. 

A  writer  in  the  American  Poultry  Journal  gives  this  excellent 
description  of  the  work  of  killing  and  dressing  for  market : 

The  chicks  should  be  shut  up  the  night  before  in  a  clean  coop 
with  board  floor,  sprinkled  with  sawdust  or  sand.  They  must  be 
given  a  supper,  but  do  not  feed  them  a  particle  the  day  they  are 
to  be  killed.  All  the  arrangements  for  picking  should  be  made  the 
day  before.  A  long,  narrow  coop  should  be  arranged  close  to  the 
sticking  pole,  and  this  pole  should  be  placed  near  where  the  pin 
featherer  is  to  sit.    We  nail  a  pole  or  shingle  rib  fast  to  the  feed 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  65 

room  or  end  of  brooder  house.  This  pole  projects  out  about  four 
feet.  Near  the  end  we  tie  a  piece  of  twine  (doubled),  and  this  comes 
down  just  low  enough  so  that  when  we  slip  the  chick's  feet  in  the 
slipnoose  in  the  end  of  the  string  the  body  of  the  chick  will  come 
■down  just  below  our  shoulders. 

The  small  blade  of  a  pocket-knife  (if  sharp)  answers  well  for 
sticking.  The  doomed  chick  is  bound  up  by  the  feet  in  the  slip- 
noose, and  the  killer  should  run  the  backs  of  the  third  and  fourth 
fingers  beneath  the  other  wing.  Shut  down  on  the  wings  and  with 
the  right  hand  raise  the  head  and  place  it  between  the  thumb  and 
third  finger  of  the  left  hand ;  open  the  beak  and  prop  it  open  with 
the  first  finger  of  the  left  hand.  The  head  should  be  in  such  a  posi- 
tion so  that  the  beak  will  point  out  from  the  hand  and  so  the  roof 
of  the  mouth  (when  opened)  will  be  presented  full  to  the  killer. 
Thus  we  hold  the  chick  securely,  and  by  holding  tightly  and  pulling 
down  on  the  string  the  bird  cannot  move,  no  matter  how  hard  he 
may  try.  The  right  hand  is  left  free  to  stick  and  pull  the  feathers. 
The  killer  now  places  the  knife  in  the  bird's  mouth  and  shoves  the 
point  into  the  brain  of  the  bird.  This  is  the  particular  point  in 
killing.  This  stab  should  be  made  in  the  center  of  the  mouth,  be- 
tween the  eyes  and  ears.  If  correctly  done  you  will  feel  a  slight 
shiver — so  to  speak — pass  through  the  bird,  and  thus  he  loses 
control  of  the  feathers  so  that  they  can  be  pulled  out  by  the  handful 
without  tearing  the  skin.  Remember,  it  all  depends  on  this  stick- 
ing, and  a  little  practice  will  soon  tell  how  it  should  be  done.  Draw 
the  knife  from  side  to  center  on  each  side  at  top  or  roof  of  mouth. 
These  cuts  should  be  made  just  back  of  the  eyes,  and  if  cut  sufficient- 
ly the  blood  will  run  a  stream  out  of  the  mouth.  The  mouth  is 
then  dropped,  but  the  thumb  and  finger  of  the  left  hand  should  still 
hold  a  few  feathers  on  top  of  head  so  the  bird  cannot  spatter  blood 
•on  the  killer. 

All  this  is  done  in  much  iess  time  than  it  takes  to  tell  it,  and 
the  feathers  should  be  drawn  immediately.  By  twisting  the  wrist 
of  the  left  hand  the  breast  of  the  bird  is  brought  around  to  the  front, 
and  the  feathers  should  be  removed  heie  first.  If  they  come  easy 
they  can  be  drawn  anyhow,  but  if  hard  then  pull  all  feathers  toward 
the  tail  or  up,  and  only  a  few  at  a  time.  Give  the  wrist  of  the  left 
hand  another  twist  and  bring  the  back  around.  Remove  the  tail 
feathers — by  pulling  up — and  then  work  down  the  back  to  the  neck. 
Now  pull  the  feathers  (carefully)  from  the  butts  of  the  wings  and 
parts  of  the  neck,  then  return  to  the  fluff,  after  which  let  go  with  the 
left  hand  and  grasp  a  wing.  Pull  the  short  feathers  and  then  the 
quills.  In  this  hasty  pulling  we  have  only  drawn  the  large  feathers 
and  have  very  probably  left  a  good  many  scattering  ones,  which 
can  now  be  pulled  more  leisurely.  About  this  time  the  bird  will 
be  going  through  its  death  struggles,  and  it  can  again  be  held  as 
formerly,  while  the  picking  proceeds,  and  it  is  now  ready  to  be 
passed  to  the  pin  featherers. 

If  done  as  it  should  be  it  will  take  from  one  to  two  minutes  to 
dress  him.    The  pin-featherer  is  supposed  to   carefully  sew  up  all 


66  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

torn  places,  if  any.  This  method  may  seem  cruel,  but  it  is  the  only 
way  to  get  the  feathers  off.  After  the  bird  has  struggled  the 
feathers  cannot  be  drawn  without  taking  the  flesh  with  them.  The 
market  demands  dry-picked  chicks,  so  dry-picked  they  will  have  to 
be.  A  high  stool  can  be  used  to  partly  sit  on  if  desired.  As  the 
chick  is  relieved  of  its  large  feathers  it  is  passed  in  the  door  to  the 
pin-featherers.  If  the  weather  is  hot,  then  things  are  moved  to  a 
shady  corner.  Thus  the  sticker  has  to  take  but  three  or  four  steps 
to  either  get  a  chick  or  pass  one  along  to  the  women.  A  large 
barrel  (oil  barrels  after  the  oil  has  been  burned  out  are  good) 
stands  handy  to  the  pickers  (outdoors  under  a  window  and  pro- 
tected from  the  sun).  This  barrel  is  filled  with  fresh,  clean  water, 
to  which  a  little  salt  has  been  added,  and  as  the  chick  is  dressed  it 
is  thrown  in,  and  should  remain  there  two  or  three  hours.  At  noon 
these  should  be  washed — the  feet  and  mouth — and  placed  in  an- 
other barrel  of  clean  water,  in  which  they  may  remain  over  night. 
If  the  weather  is  warm  ice  should  be  added  to  the  water.  If  the 
chicks  are  to  be  shipped  to  a  distant  market  next  morning,  and  ice 
is  to  be  used,  then  the  chicks  need  not  be  dried,  but  if  no  ice  is  to 
be  used  chicks  should  be  hung  up  to  dry  an  hour  before  packing. 

Pack  in  boxes  that  will  hold  not  over  10  pounds  each.  Place 
in  a  layer  of  clean  straw  and  then  a  layer  of  chickens.  Fold  the 
neck  under  one  wing  and  press  the  shoulders  well  up  against  the 
straw  at  sides  of  box.  The  chick  should  rest  on  the  breast  bone, 
with  the  legs  straight  out.  Place  in  a  row  all  around  the  box, 
then  another  row  around  those,  shoving  the  shoulders  well  up  to  the 
tail  of  the  first  row.  If  a  small  space  should  yet  remain  place  in 
enough  chicks  to  fill  it  up,  but  lay  these  on  their  sides  on  top  of  the 
legs  of  the  other  chicks.  A  thin  layer  of  straw  can  now  be  used, 
or  the  second  layer  of  chicks  may  be  placed  directly  on  top  of  the 
first  layer,  and  so  on.  Pack  as  tightly  as  possible  so  there  will  be  no 
moving.  Fill  up  remaining  space,  if  any,  with  straw  and  press  on 
the  cover.  If  ice  is  used  keep  the  chicks  in  place  by  nailing  in  nar- 
row pieces  of  board,  cut  so  as  to  just  fit  inside  the  box,  and  place 
the  ice  (broken  up  rather  fine)  in  these,  and  be  sure  and  have 
enough  to  last  until  the  chicks  arrive  in  market.  The  narrow  slats 
will  keep  the  chicks  from  moving  as  the  ice  melts.  If  barrels  are 
used  then  fine  ice  will  have  to  be  worked  in  between  the  layers  of 
chicks. 

The  method  as  adopted  by  a  Hammonton,  N.  ].,  poultryman,  is 
as  follows : 

After  the  birds  are  caught  and  weighed,  they  are  fastened  by 
their  legs  to  a  stout  cord  suspended  from  the  ceiling  (a  barrel  being 
placed  underneath  them  to  catch  the  blood  and  feathers).  The 
operator  then  gets  the  bird  in  front  of  him,  and  places  it  under  his 
left  arm.  He  inserts  a  knife  back  in  the  mouth,  and  then,  bringing 
it  a  little  forward,  cuts  crosswise,  severing  an  artery.  During  the 
operation  the  mouth  is  held  open  with  the  fingers  of  the  left  hand. 
Great  care  must  be  taken  not  to  cut  too  much  for  fear  the  bird  will 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  67 

die  before  the  feathers  are  all  removed,  in  which  case  it  would  be 
difficult  to  pick. 

The  feathers  of  the  breast  are  first  plucked,  then  those  on  the 
neck,  followed  by  those  on  the  back,  the  tail,  and  wing  feathers, 
finally  cleaning  off  those  on  the  legs.  The  more  expert  one  becomes 
the  quicker  this  operation  is  performed. 

After  the  long  feathers  are  removed,  pin-feathering  begins,  and 
generally  before  the  carcass  is  cold  the  body  is  entirely  bare. 

The  birds  are  then  thrown  into  a  tub  of  ice  water,  to  which 
some  salt  has  been  added.  When  thoroughly  chilled,  the  carcass 
is  removed,  the  clotted  blood  in  the  mouth  is  taken  out  with  the 
finger,  and  the  bird  again  placed  in  cold  water  for  a  final  cleaning. 


The  foundation  of  success  in  broiler  raising  lies  in  procuring 
good  eggs.  On  this  suject  R.  W.  Davison,  Glendola,  N.  J.,  some 
years  ago  wrote  a  very  valuable  article,  which  appeared  in  the  Poul- 
try Keeper.    We  make  the  following  extracts  : 

"It  is  impossible  for  the  best  machine  to  hatch  poor  eggs  and  the 
best  brooding  arrangements  cannot  raise  weakly  chicks.  The  first 
of  importance,  then,  is  the  hen  that  lays  the  egg.  In  order  to  get 
a  strong,  healthy  egg  we  must  have  only  strong,  healthy  hens  in 
our  breeding  yards.  The  vitality  of  these  hens  must  not  be  sapped 
by  in-breeding.  This  fault  may  not  show  itself  in  the  parents  but 
will  in  the  chicks.      We  must  introduce  new  blood  each  year. 

"There  is  great  difficulty  in  procuring  desirable  new  blood  by 
purchasing  new  roosters,  for  these  roosters  mav,  themselves,  be 
from  in-breed  stock,  and  to  overcome  this  difficulty  we  should 
raise  our  own.  This  can  be  accomplished  by  having  a  pen  of  fowls 
properly  mated  for  this  result.  It  has  often  been  said  that  the 
rooster  is  half  the  flock  and  there  is  more  truth  in  the  statement 
than  most  people  think.  There  is  nothing  so  reliable  as  a  good, 
healthy,  early  hatched  cockerel.  February  is  the  proper  time  to 
hatch  the  cockerels,  and  by  keeping  them  growing  you  can  then 
pick  out  the  best  of  them,  in  the  fall,  and  be  sure  of  good  results. 

"I  advocate  early  hatched  pullets  (not  later  than  March  hatch) 
for  stock  layers.  It  is  probably  true  that  not  quite  so  many  chicks 
can  be  raised  from  them  as  from  hens.  If,  however,  the  hens  are 
overfat,  as  is  too  often  the  case,  then  give  me  pullets.  These  pullets 
should  be  got  to  laying  by  October  1st,  and  then  by  November  1st 
the  eggs  can  be  used  for  hatching. 

"just  a  word  here  as  to  the  care  of  these  pullets.  By  the  first 
of  June,  or  right  after  mowing,  they  should  be  placed  out  in  the 
fields  away  from  the  cockerels  and  the  rest  of  the  stock.  Build 
small  houses  that  will  hold  about  fifty  chicks  until  maturity.  Have 
these  with  a  hinged  front — hinged  from  the  top — so  that  when  the 
weather  grows  warm  these  fronts  can  be  raised  and  thus  form  a 
protection  from  the  sun  and  storms.  Leave  these  open  during  warm 
nights.  These  houses  need  be  only  large  enough  for  roosting  quar 
ters  and  made  so  light  that  they  can   easily  be  moved     to    fresh 


6&  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

ground  every  day.  Of  course  no  floor  is  used  therein.  These 
houses  will  soon  pay  for  themselves  in  fertilizing-  the  ground.  I 
usually  allow  them  to  remain  two  nights  before  moving,  so  as  tc 
give  a  heavier  coating  of  droppings.  The  next  crop  from  that  field 
will  always  show  just  where  the  coops  have  stood.  Always  place 
the  coops  in  a  grass  field,  and  if  possible,  next  to  a  wheat  stubble. 

"It  will  be  necessary  to  feed  twice  a  day  if  we  want  rapid 
growth.  The  morning  feed  is  a  soft  mess  of  a  general  mixture  with- 
out meat.  The  night  feed  should  be  wheat,  oats,  barley  or  buck- 
wheat, and  in  quantity  about  what  they  will  eat  up  quickly.  Yon 
will  soon  find  that  they  will  not  require  heavy  feeding  as  they  will 
gather  nearly  a  crop  full  before  night. 

"The  object  should  not  be  to  force  the  comb  (early  laying) 
but  growth.  We  cannot  force  both  at  the  same  time.  After  a  pul- 
let commences  to  lay  her  growth  practically  stops.  I  wish  to  lay 
great  stress  on  growth,  as  it  is  the  peg  on  which  future  success  with 
broilers  hang.  We  must  have  a  large,  strong,  well  developed  frame. 
These  flocks  of  fifty  chicks  should  be  placed  far  apart  and  on  new 
ground,  i.  e.,  ground  that  has  been  tilled  since  last  used  for  chicks. 
I  know,  from  my  own  experience,  that  those  who  can  give  the 
method  a  trial  will  never  go  back  in  the  old  ruts.  Chicks  must  have 
freedom  if  the  best  results  are  desired. 

"Properly  speaking,  these  pullets  should  be  mated  with  two- 
year-old  roosters  and  yet  the  hen  herself  throws  the  largest  in- 
fluence in  the  chick,  and  while  the  rooster  is  of  great  importance 
the  hen  is  the  "all  and  in-all"  after  all — please  excuse  the  alls.  The 
strongest  two-year-old  rooster  cannot  insure  strong  chicks  if  the 
pullets  are  immature  or  the  hens  are  sickly.  The  trouble  with  hens 
is  that  they  will  be  in  molt  about  the  time  we  wish  to  commence 
to  set — November  ist — and  they  will  lay  but  few  eggs  and  the  eggs 
will  not  be  at  the  best.  I  hang  my  faith — all  things  considered — on 
early  hatched  pullets  if  managed  as  above.  We  may  loose  a  few 
more  chicks  but  we  will  also  have  more  eggs. 

"If  the  cockerels  are  hatched  in  February  and  kept  growing, 
then  we  can  use  them,  as  they  are  more  vigorous  and  far  more  cer- 
tain than  cocks.  These  are  the  first  steps  in  broiler  raising,  and  we 
should,  yea  must,  be  successful  here  before  taking  up  the  other. 
Where  a  large  number  of  fowls  are  kept  the  only  practical  way  is 
to  yard  them  in  flocks  of  fifteen.  Give  plenty  of  house  and  yard 
room.  Keep  them  busy,  and  introduce  a  vigorous  cock  or  cockerel 
in  each  yard.  Keep  your  eye  on  the  cock.  Number  each  pen  and 
as  you  gather  the  eggs  at  night,  mark  each  egg  with  the  number  of 
the  pen  in  which  it  is  layed.  All  eggs  from  pen  one  should  be 
marked  one  and  so  on.  As  you  test  these  eggs,  after  they  have 
been  in  the  incubator  five  or  seven  days,  note  how  they  come  out, 
not  only  as  to  fertility,  but  also  as  to  strength  of  germ.  If  they  fail 
to  come  up  to  a  reasonable  average  remove  the  cock  and  try  another, 
as  the  fault  will  usually  be  in  him,  but  not  always. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  69 

"Over  fatness  in  the  hens  will  produce  unfertility,  and  then  once 
in  a  while  you  will  find  a  barren  on  sterile  hen.  We  will  often  find 
a  cock  that  will  be  all  right  the  second  year,  and  sometimes  the  third 
year  too.  Always  use  such,  as  they  will  insure  stronger  chicks, 
and  by  keeping  your  eye  on  the  eggs  at  testing  time,  you  can  regu- 
late these  things  to  your  liking.  Always  keep  over  a  few  of  the 
best  of  all  early  hatched  cockerels,  so  as  to  have  something  to  fall 
back  on  in  case  of  emergency." 


jq  t  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Squab  Industry  as  Gleaned  from  a  Visit  to  William  E.  Rice,  of 

Bridgeton,  N.  J. 

Of  late  years  the  squab  pigeon  business  has  developed  quite  a 
boom ;  and,  as  seems  customary  in  all  booms,  speculators  have  been 
making  money  out  of  it.  The  press  throughout  the  country  have 
published  all  sorts  of  "expert"  articles,  and  these  led  to  the  belief 
that  the  "Royal  Road  to  Wealth"  was  simply  nothing  more  than  a 
pigeon  plant.  Of  course,  all  such  writers  had  axes  to  grind.  They 
were  dealers  in  pigeons  and  supplies. 

About  the  first  reliable  information  given  the  public  came  from 
a  manual  (Farmers'  Bulletin,  No.  177)  issued  by  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture,  entitled  "Squab  Raising,"  by  William 
E.  Rice. 

In  order  to  get  as  complete  data  as  possible,  the  writer  paid  Mr. 
Rice  a  visit  at  his  home  and  lofts — 83  Fayette  street,  Bridgeton, 
New  Jersey — with  gratifying  results. 

Plate  7  is  an  excellent  portrait  of  Mr.  Rice. 

Plate  8  gives  full  view  of  working  Homers,  showing  nesting 
pans,  and  squabs  in  nests.  The  birds  represented  in  this  picture 
number  fifty  pairs,  and  are  eighteen  months  old.  They  are  bred 
from  the  finest  stock  money  could  buy. 

The  floor  of  each  nest  is  movable,  so  it  can  readily  be  taken  out 
and  cleaned.  Mr.  Rice  once  a  week  dashes  a  mixture  of  lime  and 
carbolic  acid  in  these  nest  boxes,  and  claims  it  to  be  the  best  preven- 
tive of  lice  and  disease. 

"I  will  give  a  dollar  a  piece  for  every  louse  found  on  my 
birds,"  said  Mr.  Rice,  "with  the  exception  of  wing  lice — long,  thin 
insects  that  are  always  more  or  less  common  in  lofts,  but  which  do 
no  harm." 

The  louse  that  causes  the  most  trouble  is  a  small,  round  fellow, 
and  found  on  the  head  and  body  of  the  bird.  These  blood  suckers, 
if  allowed  to  increase  in  numbers,  will  soon  sap  the  life  out  of  the 
flock — first  attacking  the  weakest  of  the  lot. 

If  lice  get  a  foothold  they  will  increase  with  remarkable  rapidity, 
and  it  will  mean  hard  work  to  get  rid  of  them.  Plenty  of  kerosene 
oil  must  be  used.  The  nest  boxes,  perches,  and  every  crack,  crevice 
and  corner  must  be  fairly  saturated  with  it.  This  must  be  followed 
up  with  a  weekly  cleaning,  and  powdered  lime  well  saturated  with 
crude  carbolic  acid  scattered  in  the  corners  of  the  nests. 

Mr.  Rice  is  opposed  to  the  use  of  sawdust  for  the  bottom  of 
nests  and  on  the  floor.    He  savs  the  worst  attack  of  lice  he  ever  hart 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


n 


J2  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs* 

was  when  he  used  sawdust,  and  since  discontinuing  its  use  he  has 
had  no  further  trouble. 

Cleanliness  is  an  important  factor,  and  this  rule  Mr.  Rice  strict- 
ly enforces.  His  pens  are  kept  very  neat  and  thoroughly  dis- 
infected. The  birds  are  given  a  bath  during  the  Summer,  two  or 
three  times  a  week;  in  Winter,  once  a  week,  about  the  middle  of  a 
nice  bright  day. 

Mr.  Rice  supplies  his  birds  with  tobacco  steins  for  nesting 
material. 

All  new  stock  should  be  quarantined  before  placed  with  the 
breeding  flock.  A  good  dusting  with  Persian  insect  powder,  or 
snuff,  will  clean  them  of  vermin. 

Plate  9  shows  birds  just  described,  and  also  gives  view  of 
length  and  width  of  fly. 

In  the  rear  of  the  fly  will  be  noticed  a  small  house.  In  this 
Mr.  Rice  is  experimenting  with  twenty-five  pair  of  first-class  birds, 
every  pair  of  which  are  straight  Homers,  with  the  exception  of  one 
bird — a  White  Dragoon.  This  experiment  is  conducted  to  ascertain 
what  can  be  accomplished  in  small  quarters  during  cold  and  warm 
weather. 

The  birds  were  placed  in  this  house  on  the  first  day  of  January, 
1904,  and  up  to  the  date  of  our  visit — July  21,  1904 — they  produced 
an  average  of  six  pair  of  squabs  for  each  pair.  At  this  rate  Mr. 
Rice  thinks  it  safe  to  say  that  by  the  end  of  the  year  each  pair  of 
breeders  will  have  ten  pair  of  young  to  their  credit. 

The  house  is  only  6x8  feet  (floor  space),  and  is  four  feet  high  ir> 
the  rear,  and  eight  feet  high  in  front — slant  roof.  The  fly  is  six  feet 
wide,  eighteen  feet  long,  and  eight  feet  high. 

There  has  been  no  sign  of  sickness  in  the  flock  so  far,  and  only 
two  squabs  were  lost,  caused  by  a  fight  between  two  cock  birds, 
they  trampling  the  young  to  death  in  the  nest. 

Mr.  Rice,  however,  is  not  an  advocate  of  small  houses,  especial- 
ly for  beginners,  who  are  too  apt  to  neglect  birds  causing  troubl  - 
from  which  they  would  not  know  how  to  extricate  themselves. 

Plate  10  shows  a  model  house  of  five  pens,  containing  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  pairs  of  birds.  ,  The  house  measures  forty  feet  in 
length,  twelve  feet  in  breadth,  and  more  fully  described  later  on.. 
The  aviary  or  "fly"  is  thirty-two  feet  long,  and  eight  feet  high. 

The  bath  tubs  are  seen  to  the  left  of  the  picture.  These  ar- 
zinc  lined,  and  when  not  in  use  are  turned  upsidedown,  as  shown 
in  the  illustration.  As  soon  as  the  birds  are  done  bathing,  the  tubs 
are  emptied.  The  water  is  of  an  oily  nature,  and  looks  very  much 
like  milk. 

The  ground-floor  of  each  fly  is  covered  with  four  inches  of 
fine,  clear  grit  sand.  It  requires  four  wagon  loads  in  each  com- 
partment (which  costs  Mr.  Rice  one  dollar  a  load).  Four  times  a 
year  these  flies  are  scraped  clean,  swept  and  resanded. 

Plate  11  shows  inside  of  a  fly  containing  a  pen  of  two  hundred 
voung  Homers,  four  months  old,  and  selected  for  future  breeding. 
The  portrait  shows  well  the  clean,  sanded  ground  space.     Mr.  Rice 


Money   in   Broilers    mid    Squabs.  73 

thinks  it  just  as  essential  to  have  this  part  as  clean  as  the  house.  As 
rains  make  the  ground  filthy,  this  sanding  prevents  any  stagnation 
and  the  birds  remain  more  healthy. 

Plate  12  is  an  interesting  picture.  It  finds  Clayton  Tutis,  Mr. 
Rice's  "right-hand  man,"  and  who  is  more  familiarly  known  as 
"Pink" — busily  engaged  at  dressing  squabs  for  market.  "Pink" 
averages  from  18  to  24  birds  an  hour,  rough  picking;  or  14  to  16 
complete  picking,  which  includes  the  removal  of  all  the  pin  feathers. 

On  picking  days,  before  the  stock  is  fed  and  watered,  the  squabs 
intended  for  market  are  caught,  placed  in  a  hamper,  and  removed 
to  the  killing  room.  As  soon  as  this  is  done  the  rest  of  the  stock  is 
fed  and  watered. 

These  hampers  are  placed  within  easy  reach  of  the  pickers, 
and  beside  the  picker  is  kept  a  basin  of  water.  Directly  in  front  is 
suspended,  in  a  horizontal  position,  a  ring  of  wood  or  iron,  about  a 
foot  in  diameter,  and  from  this  ring  hang  four  cords,  eight  inches 
long,  sufficient  for  hanging  four  squabs  at  one  time.  A  slip  noose 
is  made  around  the  legs,  tail  and  wings,  allowing  about  two  inches 
of  the  ends  of  the  wings  to  project  beyond  the  noose  ;  tightened  well. 

With  a  sharp,  pointed  knife  a  straight  cut  is  made  well  back 
in  the  roof  of  the  mouth,  and  then  it  is  drawn  forward,  cutting  clear 
into  the  brain.  This  being  done  a  piece  of  wire,  about  six  inches 
long,  and  weighted  at  the  end  with  a  piece  of  lead  about  a  quarter 
pound  in  weight,  is  hooked  in  the  squab's  mouth. 

Four  birds  are  killed  in  turn,  and  picking  is  immediately  begun 
when  the  first  one  is  dead.  But  until  experience  and  speed  are  ac- 
quired, Mr.  Rice  thinks  novices  had  better  kill  and  pick  but  one  bird 
at  a  time.    They  must  be  "rough-picked"  before  they  get  too  cold. 

After  killing,  allow  the  birds  to  remain  suspended,  but  re- 
lease the  wings,  grasping  them  both  in  the  left  hand,  back  of  the 
bird,  while  picking.  Dip  the  thumb  and  forefingers  of  the  right 
hand  in  the  basin  of  water,  and  begin  picking  the  neck,  allowing 
three-quarters  of  an  inch  of  feathers  next  the  head  unpicked.  Con- 
tinue to  hold  the  wings  in  the  left  hand  until  the  entire  front  of  bird 
including  legs,  are  free  of  feathers.  While  removing  the  remaining 
feathers  from  the  bird,  bring  the  wings  in  front  of  the  bird,  holding 
them  in  the  left  hand  as  before,  and  while  thus  held  also  pluck  the 
quills  and  larger  feathers  from  the  wings,  after  which  finish  each 
wing  separately. 

The  rough-feathering  being  completed,  the  pin-feathering  is 
performed,  a  small  knife  being  helpful  in  this  operation. 

When  a  man  becomes  expert  in  this  work,  he  does  not  finish 
up  the  feathering  of  the  four  birds  before  he  kills  a  new  lot,  but  as 
soon  as  three  are  finished  he  kills  three  more,  and  while  they  are 
bleeding  he  cleans  the  fourth  one. 

As  soon  as  a  squab  is  completely  dressed  it  is  thrown  in  a  tub 
of  cold  water  to  drive  out  the  animal  heat,  and  to  firm  and  plump  it. 
After  all  the  birds  are  picked,  they  are  placed  in  another  large  tub 
of  water  (Mr.  Rice  uses  cold  spring  water  for  this  purpose),  an<: 
finally  the  feet  and  mouths  are  carefully  washed  to  remove  all  filt\ 


74  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

and  blood.     They  are  then  placed  in  the  third  tub  where  they  re- 
main until  ready  for  shipment,  one  or  two  hours,  as  required. 

During  the  Winter  the  birds,  after  dressed  and  washed,  are 
hung  on  hooks.  Plate  13  shows  one  hundred  and  six  squabs  hung  up 
to  dry,  ready  to  pack  and  ship. 

If  the  birds  are  sold  to  a  local  dealer,  they  are  taken  from  this 
rack,  placed  in  a  basket  and  delivered  immediately.  But  when  they 
are  to  be  shipped  they  are  packed  in  a  box  or  barrel  between  layers 
of  ice.  The  amount  of  ice  needed  depends  upon  the  time  of  the 
year  the  shipment  is  made.     During  Winter  no  ice  is  used. 

On  the  day  of  our  visit  "Pink"  was  busy  at  work  getting  ready 
for  a  shipment  of  squabs.  There  were  one  hundred  and  eight  birds 
in  the  lot,  averaging  eight  pounds  to  the  dozen.  The  prices  last 
year  averaged  sixty  cents  a  pair,  but  this  year  (1904)  the  prices 
run  a  shade  better. 

It  was  interesting  to  watch  the  packing.  Mr.  Rice  did  that  him- 
self. A  shoe  box  was  used  for  the  purpose,  and  the  inside  was  neatly 
lined  with  manilla  wrapping  paper.  About  two  inches  of  crushed 
ice  was  placed  in  the  bottom  of  the  box,  and  then  came  the  packing 
of  the  squabs.  They  were  placed  in  a  slanting  position — heads  down 
and  feet  up — the  latter  slanting  about  an  inch  above  the  head.  In 
this  way  the  one  hundred  and  eight  birds  were  placed  and  ice  liberal- 
ly used,  several  inches  of  it  being  on  top.  Then  came  more  paper, 
and  then  the  lid  was  tacked  on,  and  the  top  wired  to  prevent  tamper- 
ing. 

We  could  not  help  admiring  the  plump  carcasses — plump  and 
fat,  and  with  breasts  as  round  and  full  of  meat  as  it  is  possible  to 
get  them.  Homers  certainly  do  produce  fine  carcasses,  and  their 
clean  white  appearance  is  an  attraction. 

Mr.  Rice  has  been  experimenting  with  a  cross  of  Dragoon  on 
Homer,  but  it  is  not  so  satisfactory  as  the  pure  Homer.  The 
Dragoon  gives  the  carcass  a  prominent  breast  bone  which  spoils  its 
looks. 

"The  novice  should  begin  with  from  fifteen  to  twenty-five  pair," 
he  said,  "but  before  he  buys  he  wants  to  know  something  of  the 
goods  he  is  about  getting,  and  the  methods  of  the  man  he  buys  from. 
Birds  should  be  banded,  and  a  record  accompany  them,  telling  the 
color  and  sex.  This  is  a  guarantee,  and  he  will  be  safe  in  putting 
them  in  the  coop.  If  he  buys  haphazard,  trusting  to  the  verbal  as- 
surance of  the  seller,  he  is  apt  to  make  a  mistake,  and  not  have  suc- 
cess.     He  must  know  what  he  is  going  to  do  before  he  starts. 

"A  mistake  beginners  so  often  make  is  that  they  put  new  birds 
in  their  flock.  This  too  frequently  breaks  up  the  original  flock,  and 
there  is  great  loss. 

"So  many  big  advertisers  do  not  know  what  the  birds  are  which 
they  are  selling,  from  the  fact  that  they  buy  tTiem  up  all  over  the 
country.  They  have  no  way  of  finding  out.  The  result  is  the  buyer 
gets  them  home,  believes  he  has  mated  stock — sooner  or  later  he 
quits  the  business,  and  all  because  he  did  not  buy  right  in  the  first 
place. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  75 

"If  not  run  on  a  scientific  basis,  no  success  can  be  made  of  the 
squab  business.  It  must  be  made  a  study,  and  the  beginning  must  be 
with  mated  birds.  If  mated  they  will  go  right  to  work,  provided,  of 
course,  they  are  supplied  with  good,  clean  water,  good  feed,  plenty 
of  charcoal,  grit,  oyster  shell,  and  fine  table  salt. 

"I  think  the  Spring  of  the  year  is  the  best  time  to  start. 

"What  the  beginner  generally  does  if  he  wants  to  increase 
his  flock,  is  to  buy  ten  pair  of  breeders  and  save  all  the  birds  raised 
the  first  year.  He  will  have,  as  a  result,  fifty  to  sixty  pair  of  young 
birds.  He  will  let  them  all  breed.  The  following  year  they  will  be- 
gin raising  squabs,  and  probably  one  hundred  pair  of  young  will 
again  be  saved  for  breeders.  The  third  year  conies  trouble — the 
squabs  begin  to  die  at  the  age  of  two  or  three  weeks,  while  others 
will  be  weak  and  puny.  « 

"Then  the  beginner  rushes  to  a  pigeon  dealer  and  wants  to 
know  what  ails  his  squabs.  They  hatch  all  right,  but  die  at  a  tender 
age.  No  one  seems  to  know  what  is  the  matter.  He  continues  the 
same  breeding  and  reaps  the  same  results.  The  trouble  lies  in  the 
inbreeding  from  that  original  flock  of  ten  pair.  Sisters,  cousins  and 
aunts  are  all  bred  together.  The  offspring  have  no  stamina,  and 
the  parent  birds  do  not  properly  feed  and  care  for  their  young. 

"That  is  the  cause  of  most  of  the  failures." 

It  was  very  plain,  on  our  visit  to  Mr.  Rice,  that  if  a  beginner 
will  visit  a  good,  practical  man  he  will  learn  more  in  two  hours  talk 
than  he  can  experience  in  two  years  labor. 

Whenever  Mr.  Rice  changes  a  house  and  flock,  he  has  the  in- 
terior of  the  pen  heavily  whitewashed.  One  cannot  do  the  work  too 
well. 

Mr.  Rice  prefers  the  Homer  for  the  squab  business.  Some  think 
a  Runt  crossed  on  Homer  gives  good  results,  but  Mr.  Rice  has  ex- 
perienced that  this  cross  seems  to  wipe  out  the  nature  of  the  Homer 
blood.  The  best  cross  he  knows  of  is  Dragoon  on  Homer,  but  noth- 
ing equals  the  Homer  blood  straight.  He  has  also  found  that  the 
Dragoon  is  not  as  hardy  a  bird  as  the  Homer. 

Mr.  Rice  was  asked  what  he  considered  the  breeding  life  of  a 
pigeon,  and  he  replied  that  he  has  bred  continuously  from  one  pen 
for  six  years,  and  still  finds  them  good  for  that  purpose ;  but  after 
seven  or  eight  years  breeding,  they  are  of  little  value.  Their  prime 
•of  breeding  life  he  considers  between  the  age  of  three  and  five  years. 

He  said  the  first  year  the  parent  stock  are  apt  to  be  more  or 
less  neglectful,  for  want  of  experience.  "They  are  very  much  like 
a  young  married  couple  with  their  'initial  boy.'  " 

Then  came  the  subject  of  feed  and  feeding,  probably  the  most 
important  part  of  all  the  work,  and  upon  this  subject  the  writer 
•secured  considerable  valuable  advice,  which  we  condense  as  follows : 

In  buying  g"ain,  be  careful  what  you  buy.  The  best  is  none  too 
good,  and  great  care  should  be  taken  in  its  selection. 

The  staple  articles  are  cracked  corn,  wheat,  Kaffir  corn  and 
Canada  peas.     Millet  and  hemp  are  given  occasionally. 

Never  feed  the  birds  in  the  fly,  but  always  inside  of  the  building. 


76  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Always  feed  from  a  trough. 

Don't  give  more  than  they  will  eat  up  clean. 

Feed  twice  a  day.  In  Summer,  about  6.30  a.  m.,  and  4.30  p.  m 
Winter,  7.30  a.  m.,  and  3  p.  m. 

As  soon  as  the  pigeons  are  given  their  food,  close  up  the  houses- 
and  do  not  stand  about  or  among  the  birds  at  feeding  time,  or  they 
may  neglect  the  squabs  and  will  not  properly  feed  them. 

Do  not  tamper  with  the  birds  for  an  hour  after  being  fed. 

One  box,  about  the  size  of  a  small  cigar  box,  should  be  filled! 
about  a  third  full  of  fine  table  salt;  another  with  cracked  oyster 
shell ;  and  another  with  pulverized  charcoal.  Once  a  week  replenish^ 
the  supply  of  each,  as  all  three  articles  are  invaluable  in  maintaining 
good  health. 

Each  pen  should  be  supplied  with  a  feed  trough  about  ten  inches 
wide,  and  four  feet  long — the  sides  being  one  and  a  half  inches  high. 
This  trough  is  placed  in  the  centre  of  the  room. 

Mr.  Rice  averages  two  scoopfuls  of  a  mixture  of  cracked  corn,, 
wheat  and  peas  as  a  morning  allowance  for  fifty  pairs  of  birds.. 

The  evening  feed  is  a  mixture  of  cracked  corn,  Kafir  corn,  millet 
and  peas,  equal  parts. 

Twice  a  week — usually  Thursdays  and  Sundays — hemp  seed  is: 
given  in  place  of  millet.  Hemp  and  millet  seeds  must  not  be  fed  too> 
liberally,  as  they  are  of  a  very  fattening  nature. 

Always  sift  the  cracked  corn  before  feeding  it. 

Squabs  are  fed  by  the  parent  birds.  For  about  the  first  five- 
days  of  their  life,  nature  provides  a  food  commonly  termed  "pigeon* 
milk" — a  creamy  substance  contained  in  the  crops  of  the  pigeons,, 
and  which  the  parent  bird  ejects  from  its  mouth  into  the  mouths- 
of  the  young.  After  that  the  parent  carries  grain  to  the  young,  and: 
administers  in  the  same  way. 

Mr.  Rice  says  that  at  the  present  prices  of  grain,  he  has  found 
that  it  costs  him  about  one-seventh  of  a  cent  a  day  for  each  bird,  or 
about  fifty-two  cents  a  year.  His  profits,  with  this  feeding,  have 
been  an  average  of  one  dollar  and  a  half  per  pair,  net. 

Fresh,  pure,  clean  drinking  water  should  be  given  daily  in  two- 
gallon  stone  fountains  (in  Winter  galvanized  fountains  are  used,, 
instead  of  the  stone  ones,  as  the  latter  are  apt  to  crack  from  the 
water  freezing).  These  fountains  should  be  washed  carefully  each 
morning  before  filled  with  fresh  water.  About  twice  a  week  place- 
a  piece  of  stone  lime,  about  the  size  of  a  hickory  nut,  in  each  foun- 
tain. About  three  times  a  month  disinfect  the  fountains  by  using 
ten  drops  of  carbolic  acid  in  each  two-gallon  fountain.  Mr.  Rice- 
says  it  does  no  harm  to  allow  the  acid  to  remain  in  the  water  for  the- 
birds  to  drink  that  day. 

Mr.  Rice's  plan  for  a  house  for  a  novice,  is  as  follows : 

Face  the  South,  if  possiDle. 

Build  to  either  of  these  sizes:  6x8  feet.  8x10  feet,  or  10x12  feet,, 
to  accommodate  from  ten  to  twenty-five  pairs. 

Have  the  back  of  the  building  four  feet  high  ;  the  front  six  fee<\. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  77 

Have  a  nine-light  window  in  front,  eighteen  inches  from  the 
floor.    The  window  is  to  be  taken  out  in  Summer. 

Place  the  door  on  the  west  side. 

The  fly  can  be  made  from  sixteen  to  twenty-four  feet  in  length, 
eight  feet  high. 

For  a  larger  house,  Mr.  Rice  recommends :  Forty  feet  in  length, 
twelve  feet  in  width,  and  six  feet  the  height  for  both  front  and  back 
walls;  peak,  ten  feet;  gable  end.  nine  feet;  floor  space  of  each  pen, 
8x9  feet.  This  building  can  be  divided  into  five  pens,  in  which  fifty 
pair  of  breeders  can  be  placed  in  a  pen,  or  two  hundred  and  fifty 
pairs  in  the  entire  building.  Each  pen  is  also  supplied  with  one 
hundred  and  twenty  nests. 


78  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Pointers  on  Duck  Culture,  and  Experiences  by  the  Most  Extensive 
Duck  Raisers  in  This  Country. 

Provide  shade.  Too  much  exposure  to  the  hot  sun  is  fatal  tc 
young  ducklings. 

Do  not  feed  whole  grain. 

The  duck  usually  lays  at  night. 

Never  let  the  supply  of  drinking  water  run  out. 

Ducks  require  soft,  succulent  food. 

The  foundation  of  success  lies  in  the  breeding  stock. 

Vigorous  stock  can  be  profitably  bred  at  four  years  of  age. 

Fifty  per  cent  is  a  good  average  hatch  early  in  the  season. 

The  bulk  of  failures  is  due  to  use  of  weak  breeding  stock. 

From  July  to  September  prices  for  green  ducks  remain  un- 
changed. From  September  to  November  ducklings  again  bring 
good  prices. 

Green  ducks  at  eight  weeks  old  should  weigh  nine  pounds  to 
the  pair. 

Do  not  allow  the  ducklings  to  get  wet  before  they  assume  their 
white  feathers. 

Whole  grain  is  apt  to  produce  leg  weakness,  and  the  birds 
break  down  and  die. 

Do  not  forget  that  a  duck  cannot  well  eat  without  having  water 
to  drink  with  it. 

At  ten  weeks  of  age,  ducklings  should  weigh  from  10  to  n 
pounds  to  the  pair. 

Green  ducks  bring  the  best  prices  about  May  ist.  From  then 
on  until  July  the  price  gradually  falls. 

George  Pollard,  of  Pawtucket,  R.  I.,  prefers  ducks  and  drakes 
in  their  second  year  for  breeding. 

Clean  sand  should  always  be  mixed  in  the  food  of  old  or  young 
ducks.    About  a  handful  to  a  half  bucket  of  feed. 

George  Pollard  feeds  his  ducklings,  the  first  four  days,  two- 
thirds  bran,  and  one-third  cornmeal,  mixed  with  cold  water  or  skim- 
milk. 

A  good  mating  is  a  drake  to  four  or  five  ducks  in  the  early  part 
of  the  season,  and  six  to  seven  ducks  to  a  drake  during  the  summer. 

Always  keep  a  trough  of  cracked  oyster  shells  before  the  breed- 
ing ducks. 

In  dressing  ducks,  dipping  the  hand  or  fingers  into  a  dish  of 
water,  causes  the  feathers  to  stick  to  the  hand,  and  enables  one  to 
remove  them  more  rapidly  and  with  much  less  exertion. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  79 

The  last  of  August  generally  ends  the  duck  laying  season. 

An  average  picker  will  dress  from  40  to  50  ducks  a  day. 

C.  F.  Newman  says  duck  eggs  for  hatching  should  not  be 
washed,  or  the  oily,  greasy  covering  on  the  outside  shell  will  be 
removed,  and  they  will  not  hatch  so  well. 

After  the  first  four  days,  George  Pollard  gives  his  ducklings  a 
mixture  of  equal  parts  of  cornmeal  and  bran,  and  seven  or  eight  per 
cent  of  beef  scraps.  After  this  the  per  cent  of  beef  scraps  is  gradual- 
ly increased.    This  mixture  is  fed  up  until  killing  time. 

Prof.  Samuel  Cushman  says  in  Rural  New  Yorker,  that  leaving 
the  bran  out  of  the  duck  feed  stops  their  eating.  It  might  work  with 
green  food,  but  does  not  without.  Feeding  green  food  makes  the 
ducks  yellow,  and  they  sell  for  less.  White-skinned  ducks  are  de- 
manded. 

An  earth  floor  in  the  breeding  house  is  best. 

Avoid  overcrowding  ducks  as  you  would  hens. 

The  first  eggs  of  the  season  are  rarely  fertile. 

Salt  hay,  leaves  or  chopped  straw  make  good  bedding. 

Charcoal  in  the  food  of  the  young  will  prevent  sickness. 

It  is  a  mistake  to  allow  young  ducklings  an  unlimited  range. 

Medium-sized  drakes  are  considered  the  best  for  market  pro- 
duction. 

Ducks  kept  on  land  must  have  fresh  drinking  water  at  least 
three  times  a  day. 

A  less  number  of  drakes  are  needed  in  a  flock  where  bathing 
water  is  supplied. 

Half-igrown  ducks,  when  overcrowded  in  a  pen,  are  apt  to  get 
into  the  vice  of  pulling  feathers. 

James  Rankin  sows  rye  or  barley  every  summer  in  the  unused 
duck  yards  in  order  to  purify  them. 

Do  not  feed  green  food  the  week  before  killing  for  market,  as 
it  gives  the  flesh  a  too  yellow  appearance. 

Mr.  Rankin  estimates  that  a  young  duck  can  be  grown  to  ten 
weeks  of  age  at  a  cost  for  food  of  four  cents  per  pound. 

It  is  hard  to  fatten  the  laying  duck. 

All  the  market  ducks  are  scalded  before  dressing. 

Clover  hay  steeped  in  hot  water,  is  a  good  substitute  for  green 
food  for  breeding  stock. 

A  brooder  7x10  feet  is  about  right  for  100  ducklings. 

Ducklings  usually  start  their  molt  when  about  eleven  weeks 
old.  It  takes  a  duck  about  six  weeks  to  molt  and  get  in  good  con- 
dition again. 

A.  J.  Hallock  places  cracked  oyster  shell  before  his  ducklings 
from  the  time  they  are  put  in  the  brooder  house. 

Twisted  wings  in  ducks  is  caused  by  rapid  growth  of  quills, 
they  growing  faster  than  the  feathers  holding  up  the  flights. 

Duck  eggs  must  be  set  as  fresh  as  possible  to  secure  strong 
fertility  and  a  good  hatch.    They  lose  their  fertility  very  quickly. 

Young  ducks  accustomed  to  bathing  water  at  five  or  six  weeks 
of  age,  will  stand  more  of  a  rain  storm  than  those  kept  on  land. 


So  Money   in    Broilers   and    Squabs. 

Hallock's  cold  brooder  is  175  feet  long,  by  twelve  feet  wide.  It 
is  divided  into  pens  10x10  feet,  with  a  limit  of  one  hundred  young 
in  a  flock. 

Mr.  Hallock  says  it  costs  five  cents  per  pound  to  feed  ducks  up 
to  ten  weeks  of  age,  two  cents  for  help,  two  cents  to  market,  and 
three  cents  for  eggs,  insurance,  etc.,  making  a  total  of  twelve  cents 
a  pound.    All  over  that  amount  is  a  clear  gain. 

Mr.  Hallock  keeps  his  ducks  in  the  heated  brooder  for  from 
three  to  five  weeks,  according  to  season  and  demand  for  room.  After 
that  they  are  put  in  cold  brooders  for  about  two  weeks.  Very  early 
in  the  season  they  are  kept  in  the  cold  brooders  until  ready  for 
market. 

Fifty  breeding  ducks  should  keep  three  200-egg  incubators 
going,  and  turn  out  between  two  and  three  thousand  ducks  in  a 
season,  giving  one  man  all  the  employment  he  could  want.  When 
one  man  would  have  to  do  all  the  work,  fifty  ducks  would  give  bet- 
ter returns  than  one  hundred  would. 

Mr.  Hallock  places  the  feed  for  his  young  brooder  ducks  on 
regular  feed  sacks,  instead  of  troughs.  After  the  meal  is  over  the 
sacks  are  gathered  up,  and  when  very  dirty  are  washed. 

Mr.  Hallock  says  he  would  rather  wash  the  eggs  before  put- 
ting them  in  the  incubator,  than  to  use  very  dirty  ones.  Yet  he 
believes  that  washing  does  more  or  less  injure  them.  He  tried  the 
experiment  of  putting  eggs  in  one  tray  of  his  machine  that  were 
gathered  from  the  bottom  of  the  creek  where  the  breeding  ducks 
bathe  in.  He  noticed  that  but  20  to  25  per  cent  of  these  eggs  were 
fertile ,  owing  to  the  length  of  time  they  were  deposited  in  the 
water.  At  the  same  time  eggs  that  were  layed  in  the  houses,  or  on 
land,  gave  35  per  cent  fertility. 

The  weakest  part  of  a  duck  is  its  legs. 

Bathing  water  is  an  injury  to  a  soft,  green  duck,  as  it  developes 
too  much  muscle,  and  is  apt  to  render  the  carcass  tough. 

From  February  to  May  the  eggs  are  the  strongest  in  fertility. 

On  the  duck  farm  of  Weber  Bros.,  Wrentham,  Mass.,  the  young 
ducks  for  the  first  four  weeks  are  fed  five  times  a  day.  After  that 
they  are  fed  every  six  hours. 

Bread  or  cracker  crumbs,  moistened  with  boiled  milk,  into 
which  a  little  powdered  chalk  has  been  dusted,  Rankin  recommends 
as  the  proper  diet  for  ducklings  having  diarrhoea. 

In  feeding  ducklings,  go  through  the  pens  several  times,  and 
give  an  additional  amount  to  all  that  do  not  seem  satisfied.  One 
hour  after  feeding  make  the  rounds,  and  gather  up  all  feed  that  is 
left  over. 

Two  weeks  time  will  be  sufficient  for  fattening  ducks. 

William  H.  Truslow  says  that  the  feathers  from  ten  ducks  are 
required  to  make  one  pound. 

The  saleable  market  duck  must  be  fat,  plump,  and  round,  and 
the  skin  of  a  uniform  color. 

A  good  fattening  food  is  equal  parts  of  bran,  cornmeal  and  mid- 
dlings, and  one-eighth  beef  scraps. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


82  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Duckling's  should  be  started  in  the  brooder  at  a  temperature  of 
about  ioo  degrees,  and  gradually  reduced  in  about  four  days  to  8c 
degrees.     Sixty  degrees  will  be  warm  enough  at  two  weeks  of  age. 

"Ducks  love  to  be  out  in  the  rain  storm,"  writes  W.  R.  Curtiss 
&  Co.,  "and  we  think  there  is  nothing  that  will  help  increase  egg; 
production  like  a  good,  heavy  rain  storm,  in  which  they  can  play 
and  puddle  to  their  heart's  content." 

Weber  Bros,  teach  their  ducklings  to  eat  by  dipping  their  bills 
in  a  pail  of  water,  and  then  place  them  on  a  feed  board  covered  with 
bread  crumbs.  When  the  beak  touches  the  board,  some  of  the  dry 
food  sticks  to  it,  is  tasted,  and  immediately  they  search  for  more. 

According  to  Prof.  Cushman,  in  Country  Gentleman,  Weber 
Bros,  give  these  reasons  for  their  success :  Do  not  breed  in-and-in, 
or  raise  breeding  stock  from  anything  younger  than  yearlings.  Do 
not  fail  to  give  your  young  birds,  to  be  used  for  breeders,  more 
growing  food,  and  more  freedom,  than  you  give  the  ducks  that  are 
fatted  and  killed.  Mate  up  before  November  I,  and  be  sure  to  feed 
plenty  of  cooked  vegetables  and  green  food,  as  well  as  the  right 
grain,  if  you  want  the  eggs  to  be  fertilized  early  in  winter. 

The  following  weights  of  ducklings  from  the  shell  to  market, 
were  gathered  by  A.  J.  Hallock,  of  the  Atlantic  Farm,  Speonk,  Long- 
Island.  Mr.  .Hallock  has  a  camera  and  made  the  photos  himself, 
which  he  showed  to  the  writer  while  on  a  visit  to  his  farm: 

Half  out  of  the  shell,  weight  2§  ounces. 

All  out  the  shell,  weight  2J  ounces. 

One  week  old,  weight  3  ounces. 

Two  weeks  old,  weight  5!  ounces. 

Three  weeks  old,  weight  7J  ounces. 

Four  weeks  old,  1  pound,  3  ounces. 

Five  weeks  old,  2  pounds,  6  ounces. 

Six  weeks  old,  3  pounds  12  ounces. 

Seven  weeks  old,  4  pounds,  12  ounces. 

Eight  weeks  old,  6  pounds,  2  ounces. 

Nine  weeks  old,  7  pounds,  4  ounces. 

Ten  weeks  old,  8  pounds. 

Eleven  weeks  old,  9  pounds,  3  ounces. 

Do  not  excite  the  laying  ducks. 

The  laying  of  the  young  duck  is  irregular  at  first. 

The  duck  feed  should  be  neither  too  dry  nor  too  sloppy. 

Shake  up  the  bedding  every  day  or  two,  and  remove  the 
manure. 

During  cold  weather  it  is  better  to  house  the  breeding  ducks 
than  to  allow  them  out  doors. 

During  snowy  or  icy  weather,  throw  bedding  in  part  of  the 
run  so  as  to  prevent  the  duck  from  getting  cold  feet. 

Rankin  runs  his  temperature  in  incubator  for  duck  eggs,  at  102 
degrees  the  first  three  weeks ;  103  degrees  the  fourth  week,  and  104 
degrees  when  the  ducks  are  about  to  hatch.  / 

After  repeated  experiments  the  writer  finds  that  a  duck  will 
consume  on  an  average,  eight  ounces  of  mash  in  the  morning,  and 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  ■  83 

twelve  ounces  at  night.  The  experiments  were  made  with  breeding 
ducks. 

James  Rankin  says  too  often  the  health  of  the  young  bird  is  in- 
jured by  the  improper  feeding  of  the  mother  bird  during  the  laying 
season. 

Mrs.  J.  R.  B.,  Indiana,  writes  that  she  finds  that  medium  sized 
eggs,  shells  entirely  free  from  any  lime  sticking  on  outside,  gives 
best  results  in  hatching. 

To  illustrate  how  heavy  a  loss  one  could  endure  without  failure, 
says  John  Weber,  if  one-half  of  the  eggs  put  in  the  incubator  only 
hatched  and  only  one-half  of  those  hatched  lived,  there  would  still 
be  enough  in  it  to  encourage  one  to  stick  to  the  business  without 
taking  into  account  the  fertilizing  value  of  the  vanquished  host. 

Weber  Bros,  give  hard-boiled  egg  and  bread  crumbs  as  the  first 
meal  to  their  young  ducks.  When  they  have  learned  to  eat  they 
are  fed  on  bread  crumbs  and  rolled  oats  the  next  four  days.  After 
that  they  get  the  regular  food  of  cornmeal,  shorts,  flour  and  beef 
scraps.  They  are  fed  five  times  a  day  until  four  weeks  old,  then 
four  times. 

John  Weber,  in  an  address  before  the  Ploughman  Farmers' 
Meeting,  Boston,  said  if  one  already  owns  a  farm,  $1,000  capital 
would  give  a  good  start  in  the  business.  Such  an  amount  would 
be  sufficient  to  cover  all  expenses.  Two  incubators,  a  flock  of  about 
thirty  ducks,  a  house  for  the  breeders,  a  brooding  house  and 
heater,  feed  boards  and  water  fountains,  wire  fencing,  etc.  Such  a 
plant  would  keep  one  man  busy,  and  the  future  growth  of  his  plant 
could  be  built  on  the  profits. 

The  Weber  Bros,  feed  the  laying  ducks  during  the  breeding 
season,  equal  parts  of  cornmeal,  wheat  bran,  ground  oats  and  flour. 
Ten  per  cent  of  beef  scraps  is  added,  and  thirty  per  cent  of  boiled 
turnips  and  cut  clover.  They  are  given  all  they  can  eat  night  and 
morning.  At  noon  they  are  given  about  a  quart  of  whole  corn  to  a 
pen.  They  seem  to  be  very  fond  of  this  grain  and  begin  calling  for 
it  with  all  their  might  long  before  noon.  It  is  scattered  up  and 
down  each  yard,  and  the  ducks  scramble  for  it  with  their  usual 
grace.    A  Pekin  duck  in  a  hurry  is  a  comical  sight. 

At  seven  weeks  of  age,  the  ducklings  should  be  fattened  for 
market  and  fed  only  three  times  a  day.  Weber  Bros,  feed  3-4  meal, 
1-4  flour  15  per  cent  beef  scraps,  and  all  the  green  food  they  can  eat 
once  a  day. 

James  Rankin,  in  Farm-Poultry,  says  he  never  cooks  the  food 
for  ducks  after  they  are  a  week  old,  but  mixes  it  up  with  cold  water. 

Weber  Bros,  bed  with  saw  dust  in  summer  and  fall ;  meadow 
hay  in  winter. 

Extra  large  eggs,  ill-shaped  and  porous  shelled  ones,  do  not  as 
a  rule  hatch. 

Weber  believes  in  having  the  best  for  breeding,  it  being  folly 
to  breed  small,  undersized  birds. 

Sand  or  gravel  land,  with  a  slope  sufficient  to  give  good  drain- 
age, is  best  for  duck  culture. 


84  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Weber  Bros,  allow  about  eight  square  feet  for  each  bird,  say  40 
ducks  to  a  pen  24x15  feet. 

Contrary  to  all  former  notions  in  regard  to  duck  raising,  these 
thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  of  Pekin  ducks  that  are  annually 
marketed  in  New  York,  Philadelphia  and  Boston,  from  New  Jersey 
to  the  coast  of  Maine,  never  saw  water  only  in  drinking  troughs. 
They  grow  much  faster  when  kept  out  of  the  water,  and  if  fed 
properly  will  average  at  ten  weeks  of  age,  ten  pounds  per  pair. 

In  hatching  duck  eggs  in  an  incubator,  keep  the  ventilator 
slides  open  at  least  for  the  first  week. 

A  pig  is  modest  and  shy  at  his  trough  compared  with  a  young 
duck,  writes  S.  I.  Hudgens,  of  Massachusetts. 

Never  suddenly  change  the  laying  ducks'  bill  of  fare. 
„ Second  grade  flour  is  used  in  the  mash  to  make  it  more  lumpy. 

A  duck  is  not  fully  matured  until  about  two  and  a  half  years 
old. 

(Henry  Steinmesch  says  the  regular  laying  season  commences 
about  January  20,  and  a  fair  average  is  four  eggs  per  week,  per 
duck,  from  that  time  on  to  June  20,  after  which  they  gradually  let 
down,  stopping  entirely  towards  the  last  of  July. 

There  is  more  labor  attached  to  duck  raising  than  to  any  other 
branch  of  poultry  culture,  but  the  profits  are  better  when  the  busi- 
ness is  once  understood. 

Besides  a  trough  of  oyster  shells  constantly  before  the  ducks, 
they  should  be  supplied  with  coarse  sand  or  chick-sized  grit  mixed 
in  their  mash,  once  a  day. 

The  heavy  coat  of  feathers,  makes  the  duck  rain,  wind  and  cold 
proof,  to  a  considerable  extent,  but  they  suffer  very  easily  from 
cold  feet. 

A  heavy  soil  is  readily  poluted,  and  should  be  cleaned  and 
ploughed  at  least  once  a  month. 

Duck  eggs  over  a  week  old  do  not  hatch  so  well. 

The  older  the  duck  the  less  nervous  she  becomes. 

Artificial  incubation  developed  the  duck  industry. 

Contagious  diseases  are  practically  unknown  in  the  duck 
family. 

Cause  of  mortality  among  young:  Overheat,  dampness,  get- 
ting wet,  lack  of  grit,  grey  head  lice,  sudden  showers,  delayed 
hatches,  exposure  to  sun,  lack  of  fresh  water,  drinking  vessels  too 
shallow,  breeding  stock  out  of  condition. 

When  ducks  are  overfat  they  are  apt  to  die  during  laying 
season. 

A  deep  keel  gives  a  more  plump  appearance  to  the    market 

duck. 

Walter  P.  Laird  says  washing  the  eggs  has  a  tendency  to 
harden  the  shell  and  thereby  superinduce  too  much  evaporation, 
thus  injuring  the  vitality  of  the  egg. 

Cayenne  and  other  hot,  spicy  condiments,  must  not  be  given 
to  ducks.     Cavenne  causes  ducks  to  abort  their  eggs,  and  if  its  use 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  85 

is  persisted  in  it  will  cause  inflammation  of  the  egg  producing 
organs. 

Duck  eggs  generally  pip  36  to  48  hours  before  hatching. 

Walking  past  a  flock  of  ducks  with  an  umbrella  hoisted  will 
cause  a  panic. 

The  morning  feed  for  grown  ducks  should  be  one-half  the 
quantity  fed  at  night. 

F.  E.  Hege  says  the  best  matings  are  one-year-old  ducks  to 
two-year-old  drakes. 

In  driving  ducks  go  about  it  slowly.  Excitement  makes  them 
weak  in  the  legs. 

Neglect  will  cause  a  foul  stench  to  the  yards,  and  produce  sick- 
ness among  the  ducks. 

As  soon  as  a  duck  yard  is  empty,  sow  rye  or  oats  in  it.  There 
is  no  better  disinfectant  for  the  poluted  soil. 

Walter  P.  Laird  says  that  in  duck  eggs  there  is  ordinarily  enough 
moisture  to  hatch  them,  but  in  case  the  membrane  of  shell  becomes 
tough,  and  the  duckling  has  difficulty  in  freeing  itself  from  the  shell, 
the  moisture  pan  nearest  the  lamp  should  be  partly  filled  with  water 
at  no  degrees. 

A  recent  issue  of  the  Ploughman  says :  "Duck  raising  will  pay 
well  for  the  right  person,  but  it  will  not  pay  conducted  in  the  care- 
less way  in  which  hens  are  managed  on  the  average  farm.  Hens 
will  lay  some  eggs  if  left  to  shift  for  themselves,  but  ducks  will  not 
pay  a  cent  unless  the  owner  understands  his  business  and  attends 
to  it.  They  are  enormous  eaters  and  quickly  consume  the  profits, 
besides  being  a  deal  of  a  nuisance  unless  grown,  managed  and  sold 
just  right." 

F.  E.  Hege,  poultry  manager  of  the  North  Carolina  Agricul- 
tural Experiment  Station,  says :  "Ducks  have  always  been  reared 
in  or  near  ponds  in  our  state,  and  the  general  supposition  is  that 
water  in  large  quantities  is  an  indispensible  adjunct,  while  the  fact 
is  that  a  pond  of  running  water  for  the  old  ducks  is  all  that  is 
wanted,  and  even  that  is  not  necessary.  It  is  detrimental  to  the 
young,  and  they  should  not  be  allowed  to  have  more  than  a  plen- 
tiful supply  of  cool,  fresh  drinking  water,  and  even  that  arranged  in 
such  a  way  that  they  can  only  get  in  their  bills." 

Walter  P.  Laird,  in  Practical  Poultryman,  gives  this  method  of 
dressing  ducks  for  market:  "Market  stock  when  ready  are  killed 
by  sticking  through  the  roof  of  the  mouth  with  the  blade  of  a  sharp 
knife,  penetrating  the  brain,  well  bled  and  immediately  dry-picked. 
After  this  is  thoroughly  done  they  are  placed  in  tubs  of  clean  water 
for  a  few  hours.  Before  packing,  ice  is  placed  in  the  tubs  to  plump 
the  birds  and  to  free  them  from  all  animal  heat.  After  this  is  done 
they  are  weighed,  tagged  and  carefully  packed  in  ordinary  sugar 
barrels,  which  make  a  neat  package.  Six  inches  of  space  is  left  at 
the  top  of  each  barrel  which  is  filled  in  with  ice;  the  barrel  is  then 
nicely  covered  with  a  piece  of  cotton  cloth,  marked  to  our  dealers, 
and  they  are  ready  for  the  express  company.  The  birds  are  never 
drawn,  and  the  feet  and  head  are  left  on." 


86  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Rankin  says  it  pays  better  to  raise  ducks  than  onions. 

Newman  claims  that  the  Pekin  duck  is  the  largest,  matures 
the  quickest,  has  the  finest  plumage,  lays  the  most  eggs,  and  dresses 
the  easiest  for  market. 

Never  approach  a  pen  of  ducks  at  night  with  a  lantern. 

Two  year  old  drakes  to  young  ducks  make  a  good  mating. 

Handle  ducks  by  the  neck,  never  by  legs  or  wings. 

Newman  prefers  an  8-pound  duck  and  an  8J  pound  drake  for 
breeding. 

When  ducks  begin  laying  they  generally  show  a  black  streak 
on  the  beak. 

Breeding  ducks  should  be  selected  at  five  weeks  of  age  and  not 
fattened. 

The  most  notable  growth  is  between  the  third  and  fourth  week, 
when  the  duckling  often  doubles  its  weight. 

A  duck  must  have  water  about  its  eyes  daily,  or  it  will  not 
thrive,  says  H.  B.  Geer.  But  if  a  tank  of  sufficient  depth  is  pro- 
vided for  the  ducks  to  sink  their  heads  in  the  water  clear  out  of 
sight,  then  they  can  do  without  the  pond  or  stream.  When  this  is 
not  done  they  gum  up  about  the  eyes,  become  listless,  sit  about, 
don't  eat,  and  soon  die.  Young  ducks  that  do  not  have  water  as 
above  suggested,  drop  off  one  by  one. 

Forty  dressed  ducklings  are  packed  in  a  barrel  for  shipment. 

The  duck  averages  about  10  dozen  eggs  in  about  seven  months' 
laying. 

According  to  Rural  New-Yorker,  for  the  first  four  days  A.  A. 
Skinner,  Greene,  N.  Y.,  feeds  his  ducklings  four  parts  of  bread  to 
one  egg,  and  one-third  rolled  oats.  At  the  end  of  four  days,  about 
five  per  cent  sand  is  added  to  the  food ;  and  each  day  following, 
until  the  end  of  the  first  week,  the  food  is  gradually  changed  by  sub- 
stituting bran  and  meal  for  egg  and  bread.  The  sand  is  given  that 
there  may  be  grit  in  the  gizzard  before  commencing  to  feed  bran, 
which  has  a  course  fiber,  requiring  grit  to  cut  it.  After  a  week  he 
gives  two  parts  of  wheat  bran,  one  of  corn  meal,  10  per  cent  beef 
scrap,  and,  of  course,  the  five  per  cent  sand  should  be  continued  un- 
til the  ducks  are  fattened.  Salt  is  used  for  flavoring  at  all  times. 
About  the  time  the  sand  is  first  given,  he  begins  feeding  green  food. 
It  is  important  that,  at  least,  one-third  of  their  food  should  be 
green  stuff.  It  must  be  as  tender  and  succulent  as  possible  on  the 
start,  like  clover,  green  rye  or  tender  grass,  cut  fine.  In  winter, 
cabbage,  turnips,  beets,  potatoes  or  any  vegetables,  chopped  into 
small  pieces  with  a  root  cutter,  or  even  nice  clover  hay,  cut  and 
cooked  will  do.  This  green  stuff  is  mixed  with  the  other  food  in  a 
large  box,  and  moistened  with  water,  but  not  made  sloppy. 

The  Reliable  Poultry  Journal  says,  contrary  to  general 
opinion,  duck  eggs  do  not  hatch  as  well  as  chicken  eggs,  not  by 
20  or  30  per  cent.  They  are  not  as  fertile,  nor  are  they  as  strongly 
fertilized.  Many  duck  eggs  that  are  imperfectly  fertilized  cannot 
stand  incubation,  the  embryo  dying  during  the  process  of  develop- 
ment.    On  the  other  hand  ducklings  are  far  easier  to  raise  than 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  87 

chickens,  at  least  this  has  been  the  rule  thus  far,  hence  the  duck 
men,  given  a  good  market,  have  always  been  able  to  make  more 
money  than  the  broiler  man.  There  are  ten  successful  duck  plants 
in  operation  to-day  for  every  one  successful  broiler  plant,  but  we 
are  confident  this  will  not  be  so  three  to  five  years  hence.  The 
harder  a  thing  is  to  do,  the  better  the  price,  and  the  fact  that  ducks 
are  easy  to  raise,  are  of  rapid  growth,  etc.,  now  threatens  to  overdo 
the  duck  business. 

A  correspondent  in  Country  Gentleman,  writing  about  the  care 
of  ducklings,  says :  "Your  brooder  must  be  prepared  to  receive  the 
little  beauties,  and  must  have  been  running  at  90  degrees  for  at 
least  a  day.  Handle  them  carefully  when  removing,  taking  pains 
not  to  injure  their  legs  or  feet,  as  these  are  very  tender.  Keep 
them  dark  and  quiet  for  at  least  half  a  day  in  the  brooder,  and  then 
coax  them  to  eat.  Ducklings  are  very  timid,  much  more  so  than 
chicks,  and  will  not  bear  handling." 

John  B.  Garber,  in  Rural  World,  says  he  feeds  little  ducklings 
chiefly  on  corn  bread,  such  as  is  used  on  the  table,  soaked  in  sweet 
milk.  He  feeds  five  times  a  day  until  the  young  begin  to  feather, 
when  he  feeds  but  three  times. 

Don't  get  the  duck  brooder  hotter  than  90  degrees  for  the  start, 
and  gradually  lower  that  temperature  as  the  ducklings  grow. 

Even  James  Rankin,  who  has  bred  ducks  as  a  business  for  40 
years,  says  he  is  constantly  learning  something  useful  and  new. 

Too  wet  food  is  apt  to  cause  diarrhoea.  A  day  of  looseness  of 
the  bowels  will  take  as  much  flesh  as  can  be  put  on  in  four  days' 
feeding. 

It  is  estimated  that  laying  Pekin  ducks  will  require  from  2-3 
to  3-4  of  a  quart  of  food  per  day  'for  each  duck ;  or  from  66  to  75 
quarts  per  100  ducks,  giving  a  little  more  at  night  than  in  the 
morning. 

Mr.  Rankin  says  ducklings  should  be  fed  4  times  a  day  until 
6  weeks  old,  then  3  times  is  sufficient.  Until  6  weeks  of  age,  they 
should  be  watered  only  when  fed,  after  that  water  also  between 
meals. 

One  of  the  largest  duck  raisers  on  Long  Island  uses  equal  parts 
of  cornmeal,  wheat  bran  and  a  No.  2  grade  of  flour,  and  thinks 
cracker  crumbs  and  boiled  eggs  are  not  necessary.  He  uses  about 
10  per  cent  sand. 

The  American  Cultivator,  in  the  market  duck's  life  of  10  weeks, 
advises  for  last  2  weeks  to  feed  only  morning,  noon  and  night,  but 
for  first  8  weeks  the  feeding  hours  should  be  6  and  10  o'clock  morn- 
ing, 2  and  6  o'clock  afternoon. 

A  reporter  of  the  American  Poultry  Journal  was  told  by  the 
manager  of  Chatham  Fields  plant,  that  the  cost  of  feed  for  a  duck 
for  10  weeks  is  25  cents.  Labor  and  expenses  are  about  the  same, 
making  the  total  cost  50  cents  per  duckling. 

When  ducklings  are  intended  for  breeding  purposes,  the 
American  Cultivator  says  after  the  first  week  the  use  of  equal  parts 


88  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

by  bulk  of  wheat  bran,  cornmeal  and  green  food,  with  5  per  cent 
beef  scraps,  and  2  per  cent  coarse  sand,  will  keep  them  growing. 

The  American  Cultivator  recommends  this  mixture  for  laying" 
ducks;  50  per  cent  (by  measure)  of  cornmeal,  15  per  cent  wheat 
bran,  15  per  cent  green  food  (which  in  winter  must  be  cooked  vege- 
tables, such  as  potatoes,  turnips,  beets,  etc).,  12  per  cent  beef 
scraps,  and  8  per  cent  coarse  sand  or  grit,  by  measure,  not  weight. 
Mix  with  water  to  a  dry  crumbly  condition,  and  feed  twice  a  day, 
morning  and  night.  After  they  have  stopped  laying  go  back  to 
the  ration  of  equal  parts  wheat  bran  and  cornmeal,  unless  it  is  de- 
sired to  fatten  them,  and  do  not  increase  the  cornmeal  until  laying- 
time  has  nearly  come  round  again. 

James  Rankin,  in  Reliable  Poultry  Journal,  says  the  first  food 
he  gives  ducklings  consists  of  bread  or  cracker  crumbs  slightly 
moistened,  and  about  10  per  cent  of  hard-boiled  eggs,  chopped  fine, 
shell  and  all.  To  this  is  mixed  5  per  cent  of  coarse  sand.  Scatter 
this  food  on  a  board,  place  the  ducklings  on  it,  and  they  will  be 
busily  eating  in  about  10  minutes.  After  ths  2d  day  rolled  oats  and 
bran  can  be  safely  used  at  10  days  old.  Also  at  this  age  feed  1-4. 
meal,  the  rest  wheat  bran  with  a  little  rolled  oats  mixed  in  (not 
forgetting  the  grit),  about  10  per  cent  good  beef  scraps  or  other 
animal  food,  and  a  little  green  food  as  above.  At  6  weeks  old  feed 
equal  parts  bran  and  cornmeal  with  a  little  Quaker  Oats,  also  grit 
and  beef  scraps.  At  8  weeks  old ;  1  part  bran.  3  parts  cornmeal, 
to  fatten  them,  with  the  grit  and  beef  scraps,  but  not  any  green; 
stuff. 

Abdormal  liver  kills  many  ducks  annually. 

Geo.  H.  Pollard,  in  an  instructive  article  in  the  Reliable  Poul- 
try Journal,  says:  ''How  many  eggs  a  duck  will  lay  is  an  open 
question.  Some  of  the  most  prominent  breeders  claim  as  high  as 
140  to  165  eggs  from  each  duck  in  a  season  ;  and  they  also  claim 
that  with  fair  success  one  should  raise  100  young  from  each  breed- 
ing duck.  Our  record  is  not  complete,  and  we  know  of  none  that 
is  where  there  is  a  large  flock.  We  believe,  however,  that  the  aver- 
age total  egg  yield  will  prove  to  be  nearer  100  eggs  per  year,  than 
the  higher  numbers  mentioned.  As  to  the  total  number  of  young 
raised  from  the  eggs  laid  by  each  duck,  we  dislike  to  hazard  an  esti- 
mate. We  may  say,  however,  that  we  would  not  place  it  higher 
than  25  on  an  average  from  large  flocks.  These  figures  may  oc- 
casionally be  exceeded  by  small  flocks,  and,  perhaps,  in  an  excep- 
tionally favorable  season,  by  a  large  flock,  but  we  believe  it  is  as 
liberal  an  estimate  as  can  safely  be  figured  at  the  present  stage  of 
duck  culture." 

James  Rankin  says  if  any  one  fails  in  the  duck  business  it  must: 
be  through  his  own  incompetency  and  neglect. 
Better  keep  the  ducks  a  little  hungry. 
Keep  the  early  ducklings  for  breeding. 
An  uncomfortable  duckling  cannot  grow. 
Do  not  feed  more  than  will  be  eaten  up  clear.. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  89 

James  Rankin  says  of  duck  culture :  Independent  of  the  ele- 
ments, affected  neither  by  floods  nor  draught,  heat  nor  cold,  a  con- 
centrated cash  product  turned  every  three  months — it  makes  the 
best  of  any  crop  on  the  farm. 

In  young  ducklings,  says  Mr.  Pollard,  in  Reliable  Poultry  Jour- 
nal, overheating  causes  leg  weakness,  giddy,  whirling  spells  and 
spasms — and  ends  in  the  bird  throwing  itself  on  its  side  and  dying. 
While  shade  is  an  absolutely  necessity,  they  must  also  have  a  chance 
to  get  as  much  sun  as  they  require.  They  will  suit  themselves  ac- 
cording to  their  needs  when  sufficient  opportunity  is  provided. 

Referring  to  hatching  duck  eggs,  James  Rankin,  in  "Artificial 
Incubating  and  Brooding,"  says:  "See  that  the  heat  in  the  egg 
chamber  is  uniform.  Use  accurate  glasses,  and  place  them  on  the 
eggs  in  the  centre  of  the  egg  chamber.  Run  them  at  102  degrees 
the  first  two  weeks,  and  103  after  the  animal  heat  begins  to  rise. 
The  eggs  should  be  cooled  a  little  once  each  day  after  the  first  week, 
and  longer  after  the  animal  heat  rises.  A  little  moisture  should  be 
used  after  the  18th  day,  ventilating  a  little  more  towards  the  end 
of  the  hatch." 

Geo.  H.  Pollard,  in  "Artificial  Incubating  and  Brooding,"  says : 
"When  the  eggs  begin  to  hatch  let  them  strictly  alone.  Do  not  try 
to  turn  the  pipped  sides  up,  and,  above  all,  do  not  open  the  machine 
every  few  hours  to  see  how  they  are  getting  along,  or  to  show  in- 
quisitive friends  how  cunning  the  little  dears  look  coming  out  of  the 
shells.  After  the  hatch  is  fairly  well  over,  and  the  ducklings  nearly 
or  quite  dried  off,  open  the  machine  and  quickly  take  out  a  tray 
and  cover  with  a  thin  woolen  cloth.  Look  the  eggs  over  carefully, 
and  if  any  are  discovered  cast  in  the  shell,  or  with  head  lightly 
caught,  break  away  enough  of  the  shell  to  allow  the  little  bird  some 
freedom  of  movement  and  return  the  tray.  Frequently  these  birds 
will  break  through  and  prove  as  lively  as  those  earlier  hatched.  Do 
not,  however,  help  too  much.  There  is  always  a  percentage  of  ill- 
hatched  chicks  that  live  only  long  enough  to  count  one  hatched, 
and  then  die  with  their  duty  fully  done." 

James  Rankin,  in  the  Feather,  says :  "The  amateur  can  de- 
pend on  one  thing,  and  that  is,  that  a  well-bred  Pekin  duck  is  under 
perfect  control,  and  if  she  does  not  promptly  respond  to  generous 
feed,  care  and  treatment,  there  is  something  wrong  about  it.  I  have 
never  found  it  to  fail  in  an  experience  of  nearly  40  years." 

Geo.  H.  Pollard  says  eggs  that  produce  65  to  8b  per  cent,  of 
strong  fertility,  according  to  the  season,  are  good ;  70  to  75  per  cent, 
is  excellent. 

The  brooding  pen  should  be  7x10,  including  the  hover;  the 
hover,  2x7  feet.  The  floor  should  be  earth  with  about  an  inch  of 
good  bedding  on  it. 

Too  much  moisture  is  as  dangerous  in  hatching  duck  eggs  as 
it  is  with  hen  eggs. 

Rankin  says,  in  hatching  duck  eggs,  it  is  always  best  to  intro- 
duce a  little  moisture  just  before  the  hatch. 


90  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Hallock  does  not  allow  his  young  ducklings  (up  to  two  or  three 
weeks  old)  outdoors  so  long  as  they  are  in  the  regular  brooding 
house. 

Eggs  for  hatching  should  be  kept  as  near  60  degrees  of  tem- 
perature as  possible. 

Duck  manure  ranks  next  to  hog  manure  for  gardening. 

For  50  birds  (being  grown  for  market)  the  yard  room  should 
be  about  301x50  feet. 

Fertility  and  vitality  are  the  keynotes  of  success. 

A.  J.  Hallock,  in  "Artificial  Incubating  and  Brooding,"  says : 
"It  is  absolutely  essential  to  success  to  keep  the  ducklings  warm 
and  comfortable,  and  their  quarters  clean.  Ducklings  that  are  not 
kept  warm  enough  can  not  grow  and  have  a  thrifty,  healthy  appear- 
ance ;  they  will  be  far  from  it.  They  will  have — we  will  call  it  rheu- 
matism— for  want  of  a  better  name.  The  symptoms  are:  The 
beaks  get  very  pale  and  soft  and  grow  faster  than  the  ducks.  They 
stand  around  in  a  listless  manner  with  backs  humped  up,  and  the 
down  standing  out  straight.  The  feet  and  legs  get  colorless  and 
stiff,  and  in  severe  cases  they  lose  control  of  them  entirely.  When 
in  this  condition  the  cheapest  and  quickest  cure  is  a  good  sharp 
hatchet  applied  to  the  neck.  When  they  have  not  had  sufficient  grit 
and  have  indigestion  they  will  show  some  of  these  symptoms,  but 
not  all  of  them.  In  fact,  a  duckling's  down  will  stand  up  when  it 
is  not  perfectly  well  and  happy.  On  the  other  hand,  they  must  not 
be  kept  too  warm.  The  extremes  are  to  be  avoided.  We  can 
have  no  'cast  iron  rules.'  It  is  necessary  to  exercise  a  little  judg- 
ment. With  a  bit  of  close  observation  any  one  can  soon  tell  at  a 
glance  whether  everything  is  right  with  the  ducklings." 

Never  overfeed.  It  is  an  easy  thing  to  tell  when  ducks  are 
not  hungry ;  they  are  slow  about  coming  for  their  feed.  When  this 
is  noticed  put  but  little  feed  down  for  them,  says  G.  A.  McFetridge 
When  ducks  are  hungry  they  will  remind  one  of  so  many  pigs. 
They  will  run  for  their  feed  and  tumble  heels  over  head ;  then  they 
will  clean  up  their  regular  allowance. 

The  market  carcass  should  be  fat,  plump  and  round. 

The  duck  in  good  health  is  always  hungry. 

In  duck  culture  labor  is  an  important  item. 

The  skin  of  the  market  duck  should  be  one  color  throughout. 

One  way  of  making  money  out  of  ducks  is  to  have  a  lot  read)" 
to  sell  when  the  season  opens. 

The  great  secret  of  fattening  ducklings  is  to  be  early,  and  this 
can  only  be  attained  by  keeping  the  stock  ducks  young,  says  Geo. 
A.  Palmer.  Even  as  in  fowl  we  get  the  winter  eggs  from  the  pul- 
lets, so  ducks  of  the  first  year  will  commence  laying  long  before  the 
older  ones.  We  find  in  practice  that  it  does  not  answer  to  keep 
stock  ducks  more  than  two  years.  They  should  be  hatched  in 
March,  and  kept  after  the  first  few  weeks  at  liberty,  as  the  object 
here  is  to  build  up  frame  and  constitution.  It  is  never  wise  to 
breed  from  young  immature  stock  on  both  sides,  and  the  finest 
young  will  be  produced  by  mating  the  one-year-old  ducks  to  a  two- 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


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02  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

year-old  drake ;  yet  to  insure  fertility,  it  is  sometimes  necessary  to 
use  a  drake  of  the  first  year  for  the  early  months. 

G.  A.  McFetridge  gives  this  method  of  fattening:  If  the  trad<> 
calls  for  yellow  skin  use  yellow  corn ;  if  a  white  skin  is  more  sale- 
able use  white  corn.  A  very  good  feed  is  composed  of  one-third 
cornmeal,  one-third  middlings,  one-third  bran.  A  feed  composed 
of  the  above  will  make  more  muscle  and  require  more  time  to  fatten 
than  when  more  cornmeal  is  used.  If  the  demand  is  for  fat,  which 
is  the  case  in  New  York  market,  then  use  one-third  cornmeal,  one- 
fourth  middlings  and  one-fourth  bran,  and  about  one-eighth  beef 
scraps.  Do  not  use  much  green  stuff  while  fattening;  not  more  than 
one-eighth  part,  as  the  skin  will  be  affected  by  the  color  of  the  feed. 
When  ducks  are  put  up  for  fattening,  feed  light  for  the  first  five 
days,  then  commence  to  increase  their  feed  a  little  each  time.  You 
will  find  that  they  will  eat  until  they  will  be  unable  to  swallow  the 
last  mouthful,  yet  they  run  to  the  water  with  that  mouthful  and 
mix  it  with  the  water  and  try  to  drink  it.  This  is  the  cause  of  filthy 
water  troughs.  It  will  be  necessary  to  scrub  them  every  day.  If 
this  is  neglected  and  the  ducks  drink  from  their  filthy  troughs  it 
will  taint  their  flesh. 

Most  of  the  trade  for  ducks  come  through  the  restaurants  and 
mountain  house  and  shore  resorts,  and  in  these  places  they  generally 
serve  the  duck  in  quarters,  that  is,  cut  into  four  pieces,  so  you  can 
easily  see  that  a  duck  that  weighs  4  or  5  lbs.  will  bring  just  as  much 
money,  so  served,  as  one  weighing  6  or  7  lbs. 

E.  O.  Roessle  says :  The  shells  of  duck  eggs  being  thicker 
than  those  of  hens,  they  require  more  air;  hence  it  is  frequently 
necessary  to  run  the  machines  with  slides  wide  open,  and  also  to 
give  the  trays  plenty  of  cooling  by  taking  them  out  of  the  machines 
and  placing  them  on  top,  letting  the  thermometer  run  down  to  not 
lower  than  85  degrees. 

Col.  Roessle  says :  "I  believe  that  it  benefits  ducklings  quite 
as  much  as  chicks  to  let  them  remain  in  the  bottom  of  the  machine 
at  least  36  hours  after  they  are  all  hatched.  When  you  wish  to  re- 
move them,  after  this  time,  it  is  better  not  to  handle  them,  but 
place  a  basket,  lined  with  flannel,  close  up  to  the  door  of  the  ma- 
chine ;  they  will  scamper  into  it  as  soon  as  the  door  is  dropped." 

A  young  duck  will  sometimes  choke  if  it  has  no  water  to  drink 
when  eating.  The  water  must  be  deep  enough  to  allow  the  duck- 
ling to  get  its  head  and  bill  down  into  the  vessel,  says  Mirror  and 
Farmer,  as  with  each  mouthful  it  cleans  the  bill.  This  is  the  reason 
ducklings  appear  to  throw  water  all  over  the  floor.  They  are 
simply  cleaning  their  bills,  which  prevents  clogging  of  the  nostrils, 
and  permits  them  to  breathe.  They  should  have  no  water  to  swim 
in,  but  water  is  a  necessity  with  them  when  feeding,  as  they  wash 
down  the  greater  portion  of  the  food  eaten,  some  of  them  apparently 
not  swallowing  the  food  at  all. 

Col.  Roessle,  in  Country  Gentleman,  says :  "I  consider  the 
ducklings  first  requisite  is  water  to  drink.  If  they  do  not  "find  it 
readily  it  will  pay  to  dip  their  bills  in  it.    As  for  food,  after  exper- 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  93 

imenting  with  many  kinds,  I  have  decided  that  the  best  is  a  mixture 
•of  cornmeal  and  wheat  bran  from  first  to  last,  in  different  propor- 
tions, according  to  age.  The  first  feed  should  be  equal  parts  of  the 
above  with  a  liberal  allowance  of  course  builders'  sand  thrown  in 
and  all  mixed  thoroughly  with  water,  the  temperature  of  the  house 
and  not  as  cold  as  ice.  This  should  be  fed  about  five  times  a  day, 
but  only  as  much  as  they  will  eat  up  clean,  and  when  they  are 
actually  hungry.  If  they  do  not  come  up  to  the  board  with  a  rush 
and  eat  ravenously,  then  wait  a  longer  time  for  the  next  feed.  Or, 
in  other  words,  never  under  any  circumstances  overfeed;  it  is  bet- 
ter to  feed  them  short." 

Geo.  A.  Palmer,  in  Poultry  (English)  gives  the  method  of  fat- 
tening in  his  country:  Ducklings  will  fatten  much  quicker  and  bet- 
ter in  wire  frames  than  at  liberty,  and  on  no  account  should  they 
be  allowed  water  enough  to  swim  in.  The  wire  frames  are  3  feet 
high  and  12  feet  square,  and  can  be  moved  daily  on  to  fresh  clean 
grass.  The  feed  should  be  well  varied.  Bone  meal  is  an  essential 
and  may  be  mixed  with  sharps.  Barleymeal  ami  milk,  cooked 
wheat,  groats  and  rice  will  give  th?m  an  excellent  start,  and  green 
food  should  not  be  forgotten.  Chopped  dandelion,  onion,  lettuce, 
may  be  mixed  with  soft  food,  and  a  fair  proportion  of  meat  may  be 
given.  Greaves  broken  up  fine  and  mixed  with  boiling  water  will 
answer  very  well.  When  cheapness  of  production  is  considered  be- 
fore quality  of  meal,  maize  may  be  used  freely  at  the  latter  end  of 
the  8  or  9  weeks.  In  any  case  feed  chiefly  upon  the  lighter  foods  at 
first,  and  get  on  to  stronger  toward  the  close,  finishing  chiefly  upon 
barleymeal  and  maize.  Wheat  may  .be  given  chiefly  as  the  hard 
grain,  and  a  little  buckwheat  and  hemp  seed  will  prove  useful  addi- 
tions. But  remember  that  milk,  when  obtainable,  will  give  a  great 
return;  that  grit  is  required  just  as  much  for  duckling  as  for 
chicken  ;  that  bonemeal  has  no  substitute ;  that  the  feeds  should  be 
often,  early  and  late,  with  clean  drinking  water  before  them,  and 
there  will  be  no  difficulty  in  getting  the  ducks  off  in  the  first 
feather,  and,  what  is  of  more  importance,  at  a  profit. 

Col.  E,  O.  Roessle,  in  Country  Gentleman,  says:  "Many  ex- 
periments have  been  made  in  feeding  ducklings.  I  have  tried  many 
different  methods  myself,  but  there  is  one  on  which  I  have  settled 
that  lias  given  me  the  best  results.  It  is  simply  cornmeal  and  bran 
from  start  to  finish,  from  hatch  to  killing  time.  The  proportions  of 
course  are  changed  as  the  duckling  grows.  The  meal  and  bran 
should  be  made  into  a  moist  mash,  not  sloppy,  but  more  moist  than 
is  used  for  chickens.  A  feed  board  should  be  used,  rather  than 
risking  the  chance  of  their  trampling  the  food  in  the  earth.  To 
every  mess  of  mash  made,  a  certain  proportion  of  coarse  black  or 
builders'  sand  should  be  added.  For  example,  to  a  12-quart  pailful 
of  mash  add  a  half-pint  cupful  of  sand;  stir  it  well  into  the  mash, 
so  that  it  is  mixed  thoroughly." 

Feed  with  a  strong  smell  or  taste,  such  as  fish  cr  meat,  will 
more  or  less  lend  its  taint  to  the  flesh  of  the  duckling. 


94  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

For  birds  that  dress  from  12  to  14  lbs.  there  is  some  family 
trade,  yet  the  bulk  of  the  trade  does  not  care  for  them. 

Duck  egg  shells  are  very  thick;  therefore,  are  more  slowly  af- 
fected by  heat  or  cold.  They  retain  the  heat  even  better  than  hen's 
eggs,  and  it  consequently  is  more  difficult  to  cool  them. 

To  make  market  ducks  pay  they  must  be  fed  largely  on  cheap, 
bulky  food  like  chopped  green  corn,  cut  grass  and  clover,  chopped 
vegetables  mixed  with  grain,  and  the  like,  also  wheat  bran  and  meat 
scraps. 

In  selecting  stock  for  breeding,  size  of  frame,  length  of  body 
and  general  activity  should  be  sought  for.  Without  size  of  body 
we  cannot  expect  to  obtain  large  ducklings,  and  the  larger  they  are 
the  better  prices  they  will  command. 

As  the  development  of  the  air  cell  is  the  all  important  part  in 
artificial  hatching,  and  as  air  increases  the  air  cell  and  moisture  re- 
tards it,  duck's  eggs  require  much  more  air  than  hen's  eggs,  when 
the  moisture  and  other  conditions  are  equal. 

E.  O.  Roessle  says  early  ducklings  are  quite  as  much  in  de- 
mand as  early  broilers,  the  prices  are  quite  as  good,  and  the  expense 
of  raising  decidedly  less. 

The  Country  Gentleman  says  there  are  many  breeders  now 
marketing  over  20,000  green  ducklings  annually,  and  even  at  an 
average  of  a  dollar — it  is  a  nice,  tidy  business,  with  plenty  of  profit 
at  these  figures. 

The  common  way  of  fattening  ducks  would  be  to  cut  off  the 
bran  at  eight  weeks,  says  George  H.  Pollard,  in  American  Agricul- 
turist. He  does  not  change  the  food  from  the  time  he  begins  to 
give  them  equal  parts  of  bran  and  meal  right  up  to  the  killing  time, 
and  so  does  not  have  the  bother  of  getting  the  separate  foods 
mixed.  Green  food  is  not  given  at  all  to  the  young  ducks,  unless 
they  are  intended  for  breeders,  and  then  they  are  given  only  a 
moderate  amount  of  green  food.  Quicker  growth  is  obtained  with 
beef  scraps  than  with  green  food. 

There  is  quite  a  demand  for  live  ducks  in  all  large  cities,  says 
the  American  Agriculturist.  The  Jewish  population  will  not  buy 
dead  fowls  of  any  kind.  It  is  a  part  of  their  religion  that  the  poul- 
try should  be  killed  by  a  rabbi.  This  makes  a  good  market  for 
many  birds  that  would  otherwise  be  worthless.  The  Chinese  also 
buy  quite  a  good  many  and  pay  very  good  prices.  They  perhaps 
consume  quite  as  many  as  the  Jewish  trade.  The  Chinese  and 
Jewish  trade  do  not  seem  to  be  particular  about  quality,  and  a  good 
many  people  ship  to  them  the  lame,  halt  and  blind,  and  in  that  way 
are  enabled  to  get  rid  of  ducks  that  they  otherwise  could  not  dis- 
pose of. 

A  cold  and  wet  duckling  is  apt  to  go  into  spasms. 

Leg  weakness  in  ducklings  is  caused  by  damp  quarters  at  night. 

Cold  and  wet,  overfeeding  and  lice,  are  the  troubles  of  duck- 
lings. 

In  feeding  ducks  cabbage,  Waldo  F.  Brown  says  he  holds  the 
plant  in  his  left  hand,  head  downward,  and  slashes  it  in  slices  with 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  95 

a  corn  cutter.  He  says  he  can  cut  a  head  fine  in  less  time  than  it 
takes  to  write  this  sentence.  Unmerchantable  heads,  those  that 
burst,  and  loose  heads,  are  just  as  good  for  the  poultry  as  any,  and 
if  cabbage  is  grown  for  market  there  will  be  enough  of  these  to  feed 
a  large  number  of  fowls. 

To  meet  with  the  best  success,  the  duck  business  should  be 
conducted  by  artificial  methods,  as  hens  will  not  sit  in  time  to  com- 
mand the  high  Spring  prices. 

Ducks  that  have  had  very  little  beef  scraps  will  pick  very  nicely 
at  12  or  13  weeks;  when  fed  beef  scraps  the  pin  feathers  start  quite 
freely  at  10  or  11  weeks. 

The  first  essential  is  to  start  with  good  breeding  stock.  Birds 
that  have  been  inbred  until  their  constitutions  are  completely  de- 
bilitated are  in  no  condition  for  reproduction 

All  breeds  of  ducks  have  a  disposition  to  wander  more  than 
chickens,  but  the  Pekin  as  the  most  domesticated  of  ducks,  lacks 
disposition  to  explore  and  ravage,  says  Chas.  H.  Long,  in  Poultry 
Herald. 

In  the  South  only  3  cents  apiece  is  paid  for  picking,  while  in 
the  North  from  6  to  8  cents  in  the  charge. 

Too  often  the  health  of  the  young  bird  is  injured  by  the  im- 
proper feeding  of  the  mother  bird  during  the  laying  season. 

White  duck  feathers  sell  for  37  to  39  cents  per  pound ;  colored 
ones  17  to  23  cents. 

After  a  duck  gets  its  age,  it  is  rather  deceptive  as  to  weight, 
as  it  is  then  solid  and  fat. 

Cramps  occur  generally  from  cold  water. 

Overfat  ducks  are  easy  prey  to  apoplexy. 

Mr.  Pollard  says  one  great  drawback  with  ducks  is  that  the 
shrinkage  is  so  great  as  compared  with  other  poultry  that  it  seems 
a  high-priced  meat. 

W.  H.  Pye,  at  Eastport,  uses  400  to  500  hens  for  hatching,  and 
uses  incubators  only  when  there  are  no  more  hens  available. 

Changes  in  the  bill  of  fare  of  the  ducks  do  more  to  upset  the 
fertility  of  the  eggs  than  any  neglect  in  providing  the  essentials. 

Duck  eggs  should  never  be  kept  longer  than  six  days,  as  their 
fertility  is  an  easy  victim  to  age,  and  the  eggs  are  apt  to  smell  as 
soon  as  they  are  entrusted  to  the  machine. 

Green  ducks  are  shipped  with  heads  on  and  undrawn.  They  are 
picked  down  one-half  of  the  neck  and  to  the  first  wing  joint. 

A  dry  picked  bird  holds  its  color  better  than  oiic  that  is 
scalded. 

Green  food  should  compose  nearly  one-fourth  of  the  whole 
ration  for  breeding  stock. 

Bad  eggs  in  the  machine  affect  the  others 

The  duck  business  requires  skill,  practice  and  study. 

A  duck  can  stand  poor  shelter  better  than  any  other  fowl. 

A  dry  house  and  plenty  of  bedding  is  the  duck's  idea  of  a 
comfortable  home. 


96  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

A  good  way  to  feed  green  food  is  to  cast  it  in  the  drinking 
water ;  the  ducks  love  to  fish  it  out. 

If  the  breeding  stock  has  been  selected  for  the  brightness  of 
their  eyes,  for  the  roundness  of  their  orbs,  and  for  stamina  and 
muscle  power  in  preference  to  size,  weight  and  sluggishness,  they 
cannot  help  but  give  good  results. 

The  main  trouble  with  beginners  is  that  they  insist  in  too  close- 
ly confining  their  ducks  over  night,  thereby  causing  them  to  feel 
uncomfortably  warm,  says  Theo.  F.  Jager,  and  as  this  in  conducive 
to  start  them  molting,  and  as  a  molt  will  in  each  and  every  case 
cause  a  drop  in  the  receipts  of  the  eggs  as  well  as  in  their  fertility, 
it  is  easily  seen  why  we  should  keep  the  birds  from  feeling  too 
warm  at  night. 

To  show  the  importance  of  purity  in  food,  an  experience  of  A. 
J.  Hallock  is  worth  quoting:  At  one  time  a  lot  of  ducks  were  sick, 
and  off  their  feed ;  they  were  dying,  and  no  cause  could  be  dis- 
covered. All  the  ingredients  of  the  soft  food  were  thoroughly  exam- 
ined, and  found  to  be  all  right,  and  it  was  a  mystery  as  to  the 
•source  of  the  trouble.  Finally,  one  day  the  feeder  happened  to 
•catch  the  odor  from  the  sand  they  were  using,  and  found  that  it 
was  very  foul;  it  had  been  dug  out  of  the  bottom  of  the  creek  near 
where  the  ducks  had  run,  and  was  supposed  to  be  all  right,  but  it 
proved  that  the  leachings  from  the  duck  yards  had  flown  down  over 
it,  and  rendered  it  impure,  and  this  resulted  in  the  trouble  men- 
tioned. The  throwing  out  of  this,  and  the  substitution  of  perfectly 
clean,  pure  sand,  remedied  the  difficulty. 

James  Rankin,  in  Farm  and  Home,  gives  this  method  of  feeding: 
■"For  breeding  birds,  old  or  young,  during  the  Fall,  feed  three  parts 
wheat  bran,  one  part  crushed  oat  feed,  one  part  cornmeal,  five  per 
cent.,  beef  scraps,  five  per  cent,  grit,  and  all  the  green  food  they  will 
eat  in  the  shape  of  corn  fodder  cut  fine,  clover  or  oat  fodder.  Feed 
this  mixture  twice  a  day,  all  they  will  eat.  For  laying  birds  equal 
parts  of  wheat  bran  and  cornmeal,  twenty  per  cent,  crushed  oat  feed, 
10  per  cent,  boiled  potatoes  and  turnips,  fifteen  per  cent,  clover 
rowen,  green  rye  or  refuse  cabbage  chopped  fine,  five  per  cent.  grit. 
Feed  twice  a  day  all  they  will  eat,  with  a  lunch  of  corn  and  oats  at 
noon.  Keep  grit  and  oyster  shells  constantly  by  them.  I  never 
cook  food  for  ducks  after  they  are  a  week  old,  but  mix  it  with  cold 
water." 


In  1897,  Prof.  Samuel  Cushman  gave  Rural  New-Yorker  a  very 
interesting  and  valuable  report  of  the  duck  farm  owned  and  operated 
by  George  Pollard,  of  Pawtucket,  R.  I.  We  make  the  following  ex- 
tracts : 

Mr.  Pollard  estimates  that  he  gets  about  50  ducks  from  every 
100  eggs  put  in  the  machines,  not  counting  the  first  two  and  last 
two  hatches,  which  do  not  usually  turn  out  so  well.  Of  the  early 
lots  of  eggs,  sometimes  50  per  cent  are  fertile  and  of  these  about  5c 
or  60  per  cent  hatch.  He  runs  the  machines  at  102  degrees,  and 
says  "of  course  they  vary  some,  but  if  the  stock  is  good  and  the 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  97 

germs  strong,  the  fertile  eggs  will  hatch  if  the  temperature  is  any- 
where near  right." 

The  eggs  are  tested  on  the  fifth  day,  and  the  infertile  ones  are 
sold  to  cheap  markets  and  to  peddlers  who  supply  bakers  and 
restaurants,  at  the  usual  price  received  for  ducks'  eggs,  or  about  five 
cents  more  per  dozen  than  hens'  eggs.  His  egg  tester  consists  of  a 
lamp  inside  of  a  box,  in  the  front  of  which  is  a  hole  several  inches 
in  diameter  covered  with  rubber  cloth,  in  which  is  an  egg-shaped 
opening  somewhat  smaller  than  the  eggs  to  be  tested.  Inside  the 
box,  back  of  the  lamp,  is  fastened  an  ordinary  lantern  reflector,  to 
concentrate  the  rays  of  the  lamp  on  the  egg.  The  tester  is  well 
braced  and  firmly  placed,  so  that  the  operator  can  lean  against  it 
without  stirring  it.  He  does  not  put  pans  of  water  in  the  machines 
to  make  the  air  moist,  until  the  ducklings  pip  the  shells,  then  but 
one  pan  is  placed  in  each  machine.  As  soon  as  the  ducklings  dry  off 
and  can  stand,  they  are  taken  out  of  the  egg  trays  and  put  in  the 
bottom  of  the  machine,  where  they  are  left  from  24  to  36  hours 
without  food  or  water.  Then  they  are  put  out  in  the  brooder  house 
tinder  the  hot  water  pipe  brooders  and  are  fed  and  watered  imme- 
diately. They  are  given  a  mixture  consisting  of  bran,  two-thirds 
and  corn  meal  one-third,  and  this  is  not  cooked  or  scalded,  but  is 
mixed  with  cold  water  or  skim-milk.  He  finds  that  the  ducklings 
do  just  as  well  on  uncooked  food,  and  that  it  is  unnecessary  work  to 
cook  it.  According  to  his  experience  green  stuff  is  not  necessary 
in  raising  green  ducks  that  are  to  be  killed  for  market  while  young. 
His  young  ducks  were  not  fed  green  stuff  the  past  season.  Bran 
answers  his  purpose  just  as  well.  When  asked  whether  green 
crops  that  furnished  both  carbonaceous  and  nitrogenous  matter 
would  not  have  lessened  his  grain  bill,  he  remarked  that  grain  had 
been  so  cheap  the  past  season  that  he  did  not  think  that  it  would, 
besides  the  flesh  of  the  young  ducks  would  have  been  softer.  His 
ducks,  the  marketmen  say,  are  firmer  and  stand  up  better  than 
others  that  are  fed  differently. 

The  above  mixture  is  fed  for  the  first  four  days,  after  which 
they  are  given  a  mixture  consisting  of  equal  parts  of  corn  meal  and 
bran,  and  seven  or  eight  per  cent  of  beef  scraps.  After  this,  the 
per  cent  of  beef  scraps  is  gradually  increased.  At  three  weeks  of 
age,  their  food  contains  15  per  cent  of  beef  scraps.  This  mixture 
is  fed  up  to  the  time  they  are  killed.  He  does  not  leave  off  the  bran, 
as  some  do  to  make  them  get  extra  fat,  before  they  are  killed,  be- 
cause he  finds  that  they  do  not  do  as  well  with  him.  Leaving  off  the 
bran  stops  their  eating.  It  might  work  with  green  food,  but  does 
not  work  without  it.  Feeding  green  food  makes  the  ducks  yellow, 
and  they  sell  for  less.  White-skinned  ducks  and  geese  are  de- 
manded. 

The  green  ducks  are  usually  killed  when  eight  weeks  old,  when 
they  weigh  about  nine  pounds  per  pair.  Sometimes  they  are  as 
heavy  as  10  pounds  per  pair  at  that  age.  At  10  weeks,  they  average 
about  11  pounds  per  pair,  and  range  from  9  to  14  pounds  per  pair. 
They  are  usually  selected  and  killed  when  "fit,"  although  the  num- 


98  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

ber  killed  depends  upon  the  market  price  and  the  demand.  Mr. 
Pollard  keeps  one  picker  who  does  nothing  during  the  season  but 
kill  and  pick  ducks  and  fowls.  This  man  will  kill  and  prepare  for 
market  57  young  ducks  in  eight  hours. 

The  ducks  to  be  killed  are  confined  in  two  coops  in  a  room  ad- 
joining the  picking  place,  to  which  access  is  had  through  hinged 
doors  opening  into  the  picking  room.  The  ducks  are  thus  shut  up 
out  of  sight,  and  are  much  quieter  than  if  confined  in  sight  of  the 
killing  operations.  As  these  doors  opening  into  the  pens  are  about 
shoulder  high,  the  picker  can  reach  in  and  select  one  without  stoop- 
ing and  with  very  little  disturbance  of  the  rest.  The  ducks  are  stuck 
or  bled  by  opening  the  bill  and  making  a  cross  cut  in  the  back  of  the 
throat  on  the  inside,  so  that  no  wound  shows,  on  the  outside.  This 
severs  the  large  arteries  and  pierces  the  brain  and  causes  relaxation 
of  the  skin  and  muscles.  Immediately  after,  they  are  struck  on  the 
head  with  a  club,  then  held  over  a  galvanized  iron  pail  to  catch  most 
of  the  blood,  and  immediately  picked.  The  picker  sits  in  a  chair 
drawn  up  alongside  a  box  which  is  about  as  high  as  his  knees,  into 
which  the  feathers  are  placed.  He  lays  the  duck  across  his  lap  and 
holds  its  head  between  his  knee  and  the  box  to  prevent  its  flutter- 
ing, and  that  the  blood  that  escapes  may  go  on  the  floor  instead  of 
on  to  the  feathers.  As  he  removes  the  feathers,  the  picker  fre- 
quently dips  his  hand  or  fingers  into  a  dish  of  water  which  is  always 
within  reach.  This  causes  the  feathers  to  stick  to  his  hand,  and 
enables  him  to  remove  them  more  rapidly  and  with  much  less  exer- 
tion. In  removing  the  pin  feathers,  they  are  caught  between  the 
blade  of  a  knife  held  in  the  hand  and  the  thumb.  In  this  work,  the 
pin  feathers  are  thoroughly  wet  that  they  may  stick  to  the  thumb 
and  be  more  easily  grasped  and  plucked.  The  neck,  head  and  wings 
are  not  plucked ;  the  feathers  are  left  on  and  a  string  is  tied  around 
the  body  of  the  bird  to  bind  the  wings  close  to  the  body.  They  are 
never  drawn  except  for  private  customers.  Immediately  after  they 
are  dressed,  they  are  placed  in  a  barrel  or  tank  of  ice  water  to  re- 
move the  animal  heat,  and  to  shrink  the  flesh  or  make  them  more 
plump  or  compact.  Here  they  are  kept  until  they  are  shipped  to 
market.  When  sent  to  New  York  City,  they  are  packed  in  ice,  but 
this  is  not  necessary  in  sending  them  to  Boston  and  near-by  points. 
Mr.  Pollard  sends  green  ducks  to  market  from  May  1  to  about 
November,  15,  when  the  last  are  slaughtered.  He  supplies  the  mar- 
kets in  Providence,  Pawtucket  and  vicinity,  and  sells  many  ducks 
direct  to  the  consumers,  but  the  bulk  of  his  product  goes  to  the 
dealers  in  the  large  cities.  Green  ducks  bring  the  highest  price 
about  May  1 ;  from  then  until  July,  the  price  gradually  falls.  From 
July  to  September,  the  price  remains  unchanged,  but  after  Septem- 
ber 1  again  rises  and,  in  October,  ducks  that  it  has  cost  less  to  raise 
than  the  early  ones,  again  bring  good  prices.  In  November,  west- 
ern ducks  are  sent  to  market,  in  great  numbers,  and  the  price  then 
goes  very  low. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  99 

Prof.  Cushman,  in  American  Agriculturist,  gives  these  facts 
concerning"  James  Rankin's  ranch : 

The  laying  ducks  were  quartered  in  double-pitched-roof 
houses  about  16  feet  wide  and  of  different  lengths.  One  is  200  feet 
long  and  others  120,  70  and  60  feet.  Three  are  30  feet  in  length  and 
several  11  feet  square.  They  are  made  of  cheap  hemlock  lumber 
and  covered  with  standard  roofing.  The  material  for  one  building 
120  by  16  feet  cost  about  $100.  The  interior  of  this  house  is  divided 
into  pens  12  by  18  feet,  with  an  aisle  along  the  back  wide  enough 
for  the  passage  of  an  attendant  with  a  wheelbarrow.  There  are 
three  or  four  sliding  half  windows  in  the  front  of  each  pen.  The 
indoor  partitions  are  about  two  feet  high.  The  pens  are  bedded 
with  meadow  hay,  and  30  ducks  and  6  drakes  are  quartered  in  each. 
A  yard  100  feet  long  and  as  wide  as  the  pens,  made  of  30  inch  net- 
ting, is  connected  with  each.  The  ducks  have  access  to  these  both 
day  and  night  in  the  summer  and  during  the  day,  after  they  have 
laid,  in  winter. 

When  feeding  them  in  winter,  the  food  troughs  are  placed  in 
the  pens  near  the  walk,  so  as  to  be  reached  from  the  walk,  also  a 
box  of  coarse  sand  and  of  crushed  oyster  shells.  Prepared  grit  is 
mixed  with  all  soft  food.  Low  nests  are  arranged  along  the  aisles 
and  the  eggs  are  collected  from  the  walk.  These  are  well  bedded 
with  hay,  and  90  per  cent,  of  the  eggs  are  clean  enough  to  be  used 
without  being  washed,  an  important  item. 

The  laying  ducks  are  removed  from  their  winter  quarters  about 
August  1,  and  the  yards  are  sown  with  rye,  to  purify  the  land  and 
to  furnish  green  feed.  The  birds  are  pastured  on  green  sward  during 
the  summer.  They  are  removed  to  a  fresh  place  frequently  and 
these  plots  are  readily  distinguished  the  next  season  by  the  dark 
green  color  and  rank  growth  of  the  grass  which  covers  them. 
Young  ducks  intended  for  breeders  are  also  pastured  out  in  this 
way  and  both  are  fed  lightly  through  the  summer.  Their  food  is 
composed  largely  of  bran,  with  but  a  very  slight  proportion  of  corn 
meal  and  mixed  into  a  soft  mess,  and  is  given  morning  and  evening. 
They  are  fed  lightly,  because  they  should  forage. 

When  housed,  about  November  15,  Mr.  Rankin  gives  them 
twice  a  day  a  soft  food  made  of  equal  parts  corn  meal,  wheat  bran 
and  Quaker  oat  feed,  and  12  or  15  per  cent  beef  scraps.  To  this  is 
added  one-fourth  part  cooked  vegetables,  like  small  potatoes,  tur- 
nips, etc.  They  are  also  given  all  the  green  rye  and  refuse  cabbage 
they  will  eat.  A  little  whole  corn  is  given  them  at  noon  but  no  more 
food  at  one  time  than  they  can  eat  up  clean.  He  finds  that  under 
such  management  they  lay  in  about  three  weeks  after  being  housed. 
(A  young  duck  can  easily  be  made  to  lay  at  five  months,  old,  if  de- 
sired.) At  first  the  fertility  of  the  eggs  is  low,  but  soon  becomes 
high.  The  average  yield  of  a  flock,  counting  ducks  and  drakes,  will 
be  over  100  eggs  per  head  per  year,  a  high  average  for  one  duck 
being  150  eggs  in  one  season. 


ioo  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

About  three-fourths  of  those  who  take  up  artificial  duck  raising 
make  a  failure  of  it  because  they  are  not  suited  to  the  business.  It 
requires  intense  application  and  constant  supervision.  All  hands 
must  be  up  early  and  work  early  and  late.  Most  people  are  unwill- 
ing to  put  in  the  16  to  17  hours  required  during  the  long  summer 
days. 


We  will  conclude  the  duck  chapter  by  making  selections  from  a 
lengthy  article  by  Prof.  Cushman,  and  which  appeared,  in  1897,  in 
the  Cultivator  and  Country  Gentleman.  The  article  in  question  is 
full  of  encouragement,  as  it  plainly  tells  the  story  of  how  James 
Rankin,  and  the  Weber  Bros.,  gradually  built  up  a  profitable  busi- 
ness. 

"Thirty  or  forty  years  ago,  when  James  Rankin,  the  pioneer 
in  raising  ducks  by  artificial  means,  was  working  out  his  present 
system  of  production,  he  was  a  butt  for  the  ridicule  of  the  com- 
munity in  which  he  lived.  Although  disappointing  failures,  at- 
tended with  much  loss,  were  frequently  met  with,  he  persevered  in 
spite  of  discouragement  and  at  last  won  victory.  By  experimenting 
with  different  breeds,  kinds  of  food  and  methods  of  management, 
he  was  enabled,  by  artificial  means,  to  cause  ducks  to  reproduce 
when  all  nature  was  against  it,  and  therefore  realize  an  immense 
profit  when  the  product  was  placed  on  the  market. 

"When  Mr.  Rankin  published  accounts  of  his  operations,  how 
he  could  by  artificial  means  produce  ducks  at  a  cost  for  food  of 
about  5  cents  per  pound,  put  them  on  to  the  market  long  before 
naturally  reared  ducks  were  ready,  and  get  40  cents  per  pound  for 
them,  much  interest  was  aroused,  but  there  was  skepticism  in  the 
minds  of  many  in  regard  to  the  practicability  of  raising  any  kink 
of  poultry  in  such  large  numbers.  Others,  who  did  not  question  the 
facts  as  given,  were  sure  that  the  market  would  soon  be  overdone 
and  the  price  drop  to  where  there  would  be  little  profit  in  the  busi- 
ness. But  what  are  the  facts?  In  1876,  when  Mr.  Rankin  first  had 
large  numbers  for  market,  no  one  wanted  ducks.  For  five  years  he 
had  to  visit  dealers  and  drum  up  trade.  Meanwhile  the  public  taste 
was  educated  to  appreciate  roast  ducklings  at  ten  weeks,  and  they 
soon  became  popular  in  market.  When  Mr.  Rankin  produced  but 
1500  yearly,  they  were  hard  to  sell,  but  later,  though  he  raised  10,- 
000  each  season,  he  could  not  fill  his  orders.  Fifteen  years  ago  early 
ducks  brought  him  45  cents  per  pound  and  late  ones  not  less  than 
16  cents,  and  then  grain  was  very  high.  Now  with  cheap  grain  and 
scores  of  large  duck  ranches  in  various  parts  of  the  country  turning 
out  thousands  annually,  the  price  for  the  same  quality  is  little  or  no 
lower. 

"Duck-raising  was  carried  on  extensively  on  Long-Island  long 
before  Mr.  Rankin's  product  was  put  on  the  New- York  market,  but 
his  artificial  incubators  enabled  him  to  produce  his  ducks  earlier, 
lead  the  market,  and  thus  get  the  highest  price.  Even  after  the 
Long-Island  raisers  had  adopted  the  artificial  methods  of  raising, 
Mr.  Rankin's  inland  grown  scrap-fed  ducks  were  preferred,  and  he 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


IOI 


i 


v 

i 


Plate  12.  —  DRESSING  SQUABS  FOR  MARKl'T. 


102  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

received  20  to  22  cents  per  pound  when  the  island  ducks  brought 
but  16  to  18  cents.  The  reason  was  that  the  latter  were  fed  much 
fish,  which  gave  their  flesh  a  strong  flavor,  and  the  best  trade 
would  not  touch  them.  Long-Island  raisers  were  obliged  to  give 
up  feeding  fish  and  guarantee  their  ducks  not  fish-fed  in  order  to 
secure  the  same  price  for  the  same  quality  of  goods. 

At  first,  Mr.  Rankin  made  blunder  after  blunder  and  contended 
with  all  sorts  of  difficulties,  because  he  had  little  idea  of  the  syste- 
matic care  and  regular  feeding  required  to  insure  against  loss  and 
enable  young  birds  to  attain  a  weight  in  a  few  weeks  that  he  sup- 
posed required  as  many  months.  Although  those  who  attempt  to 
follow  in  his  footsteps  have  the  benefit  of  his  experience,  he  says 
about  three-fourths  make  a  failure  of  it.  This  is  because  they  are 
not  suited  to  it,  will  not  give  the  constant  attention  required,  or 
work  14  to  16  hours  every  day  during  the  season. 

"Quite  a  number  of  Mr.  Rankin's  successful  disciples  have  gone 
into  the  business  even  more  extensively  than  he,  and  are  being  re- 
warded accordingly.  A  notable  example  is  the  case  of  the  Weber 
Bros.,  of  Norfolk  County,  Mass.,  just  south  of  Boston. 

"Mr.  Weber,  the  father,  a  German  who  had  worked  with  his 
sons  in  a  leather  factory  ever  since  he  came  to  this  country,  was 
tempted  to  leave  the  factory  and  take  his  family  out  into  the  coun- 
try and  try  farming.  He  was  familiar  with  farming  in  Germany, 
where  scientific  methods  are  more  generally  followed  than  here, 
and  thought  he  might  be  able  to  do  well  on  the  farm.  A  suitable 
place  was  selected,  partly  paid  for  and  farming  undertaken.  The 
family — father,  four  sons  and  two  daughters — were  strong  and 
hardy,  and  worked  early  and  late,  but  found  they  barely  made  a 
living.  They  cultivated  various  crops  and  kept  18  cows,  but  could 
not  more  than  pay  their  expenses,  to  say  nothing  of  paying  the 
balance  due  for  the  farm.  It  was  so  hard  to  get  any  money  for  what 
was  produced  that  after  farming  for  six  years  they  felt  obliged  to 
look  for  some  other  source  of  income.  Hearing  of  Mr.  Rankin's 
profits  in  producing  large  quantities  of  chickens  and  ducks,  they,  in 
1888,  visited  him,  learned  his  ideas  and  at  first  tried  chickens.  They 
bought  of  him  300  eggs,  hatched  180  chickens,  nearly  all  of  which 
were  raised,  and  were  sold  in  May  for  $1.25  each.  As  one  of  the 
Webers  said,  the  amount  received  was  more  money  than  they  had 
taken  at  one  time  since  they  had  been  on  the  farm.  This  encouraged 
them,  and  duck  raising  was  commenced.  In  1889  they  raised  800 
chickens  and  500  ducks.  In  1890,  when  they  were  $3000  in  debt, 
they  bought  two  600  egg  incubators,  and  from  40  breeding  ducks 
hatched  3000  ducklings.  From  200  to  300  chickens  were  also  raised. 
That  year  they  marketed  2800  young  ducks.  By  doing  all  the  work 
themselves — the  father  and  three  sons — they  cleared  $1800  that 
season.  When  they  were  killing  and  shipping  two  barrels  of  ducks 
per  day,  they  received  $120  per  shipment. 

"In  1891,  150  breeding  ducks  were  kept,  six  600-egg  incu- 
bators used,  4000  ducklings  hatched  and  800  chickens,  and  only 
about  3000  marketed  and  $2000  cleared  ;  this  season  the  price  of  grain 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  103 

was  high.  In  1892,  280  breeding  ducks  were  kept,  ten  600-egg  in- 
cubators used,  6000  ducks  marketed,  and  $2000  cleared.  In  1893, 
350  breeding  ducks  were  kept,  ten  600-egg  machines  used,  6000 
ducks  marketed,  and  $2000  cleared. 

"In  1894,  with  the  same  number  of  breeding  ducks  and  ma- 
chines, 8000  ducklings  were  hatched  7000  marketed  and  nearly  $3000 
;leared.  In  1895,  from  500  breeders,  and  14  machines,  9500  ducklings 
were  marketed  and  $4000  cleared.  Last  season  from  500  breeders 
and  18  machines,  21,000  ducklings  were  hatched  19,000  sold  and  be- 
tween $7000  to  $8000  secured. 

"They  have  paid  for  the  place,  built  a  new  dwelling  house,  and 
spent  $2000  on  buildings  and  other  improven/ents.  Their  farm  now 
represents  an  investment  of  $20,000,  and  they  are  free  from  debt. 

"During  the  height  of  this  season  they  feed  14  tons  of  grain 
per  week.  The  requirements  of  500  breeding  ducks  are  five  bushels 
of  grain  and  one  barrel  of  turnips  per  day,  beside  green  food. 

"They  do  not  cook  the  feed,  but  mix  it  with  the  hot  cooked 
vegetables,  so  it  is  thoroughly  warmed.  They  use  a  60-gallon  and 
a  30-gallon  set  kettle  for  boiling  vegetables  and  heating  water.  The 
feeding  is  done  throughout  the  season  by  two  men  with  the  assis- 
tance of  two  boys.  In  all  14  persons  are  employed  on  the  place  from 
May  until  September. 

"The  farming  now  done  is  mostly  the  raising  of  vegetables  and 
green  crops  for  the  ducks.  The  quantity  of  manure  produced  is 
much  greater  than  when  18  cows  were  kept,  and  the  land,  once 
quite  poor,  now  grows  great  crops.  Where  ducks  are  yarded,  the 
manure  must  be  scraped  off  and  removed,  and  rye  or  some  other 
crop  grown  each  season  to  purify  the  land.  They  raise  500  bushels 
turnips,  the  variety  preferred  being  the  yellow  Swedish  turnip,  and 
100  bushels  carrots,  as  well  as  the  rye  and  corn  fodder.  They  use 
200  head  of  cabbage  during  the  season. 

"As  it  is  the  early  ducks  that  pay  the  best  they  aim  to  secure 
fertile  eggs,  having  strong  germs,  early  in  the  winter,  and  do  excel 
in  this  respect. 

"The  old  ducks  do  not  usually  lay  much  before  February;  so 
young  ducks  are  depended  upon  for  early  market  production,  the 
mature  old  birds  being  used  in  the  production  of  breeding  stock. 
While  they  are  able  to  induce  their  young  ducks  to  lay  as  early  as 
they  wish,  they  cannot  persuade  the  drakes  to  fulfill  their  part  of 
the  programme  much  before  New  Year ;  therefore  young  ducks  are 
not  encouraged  to  lay  much  before  that  time.  They  prefer  for 
breeders,  ducks  that  weigh  eight  pounds  and  drakes  that  weigh 
twelve  pounds  when  mature.  A  thirteen-pound  drake  is  too  heavy. 
They  are  selected  in  July  from  the  April-hatched  birds  and  only 
from  those  that  were  raised  from  mature  stock,  yearlings  or  two 
year-olds.  They  are  chosen  for  depth  of  keel,  size,  weight  and 
plumpness.  They  are  then  put  in  large  yards,  where  they  have  ac- 
:ess  to  grass  pasturage  and  have  much  freedom  and  are  fed  more 
growing  food  than  is  given  those  that  are  to  be  fatted  for  market. 
This  consists  of  equal  Darts  of  shorts,  gluten  feed  and  ground  oats. 


104  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

to  which  is  added  five  per  cent,  of  beef  scraps,  and  it  is  given  them 
twice  daily.  At  this  time  they  are  also  mated  just  as  they  are  to  be 
Dred  the  following-  season.  Beginners  usually  mate  ducks  too  late 
in  the  season;  it  should  always  be  done  by  November  I,  to  insure 
best  results. 

"During  the  summer  and  early  fall  these  birds  are  not  housed 
at  night  but  allowed  access  to  a  house  that  is  openly  built  of  boards 
and  is  without  windows,  which  gives  them  shade  or  shelter.  About 
November  15,  they  are  placed  in  the  houses  for  laying  ducks  and 
allowed  the  liberty  of  a  yard  100  by  20  feet  during  the  day.  They 
are  then  fed  twice  daily  on  a  mixture  of  equal  parts  shorts  and 
ground  oats,  to  which  is  added  five  per  cent,  beef  scraps. 

"About  Christmas,  when  grass  and  green  rye  are  no  longer 
available,  corn  meal  is  substituted  for  the  ground  oats  and  ten  per 
cent,  of  beef  scraps  given  instead  of  five  per  cent.  To  the  mixture 
is  also  added  one-fifth  part  of  boiled  vegetables — beets,  turnips,  or 
carrots  cut  up  in  a  root  cutter  and  cooked  in  a  boiler.  They  are  also 
fed  cut  raw  cabbage  and  raw  turnips,  two  or  three  times  per  week. 
The  raw  cabbage  is  cut  in  a  root  cutter  and  the  turnips  in  a  bone 
cutter.  The  cabbage  fed  is  never  cooked.  They  estimate  that  they 
receive  an  average  of  150  eggs  per  duck  during  the  season.  Most 
of  the  eggs  laid  before  January  are  sold  in  the  market.  The  clear 
infertile  eggs,  tested  out  on  the  fifth  day  of  incubation  are  also  sold 
throughout  the  season.  The  production  of  ducks'  eggs  to  sell  in 
the  market  they  do  not  consider  profitable. 

"They  have  no  ponds  for  their  ducks,  but  by  the  above  method 
of  feeding  they  have  no  trouble  to  get  eggs  that  will  hatch  from 
January  I  until  August.  During  the  season  of  1896  fully  seventy- 
five  per  cent,  of  their  ducks'  eggs  were  fertile,  and  of  all  eggs  put 
in  the  machine  fifty-eight  per  cent  hatched.  About  January  1, 
1896,  their  ducks  were  laying  about  sixty  eggs  per  day.  In  March 
they  were  getting  480  eggs  per  day  from  520  ducks.  On  February 
10,  1897,  they  received  about  400  eggs  from  600  laying  ducks  of 
which  425  were  young  ducks,  29  eggs  being  picked  up  from  a  pen 
of  30  young  birds.  They  also  had  at  this  date  no  ducklings,  but  had 
4,000  fertile  eggs  in  their  incubators.  On  February  23,  they  had 
800  ducklings  and  5,200  fertile  eggs  in  their  machines. 

"The  point  is  to  get  the  ducklings  into  market  when  they  bring 
$1.25  to  $2  each. 

"Their  houses  for  laying  ducks,  are  85  feet  long,  18  feet  wide. 
6  feet  high  in  the  rear,  4  feet  high  at  the  front,  12  feet  high  at  the 
ridge,  and  cost,  covered  with  Neponset,  $150  each.  They  are  high 
and  airy  and  make  excellent  winter  quarters.  They  are  divided  up 
into  pens  20  by  15  feet,  leaving  a  three-foot  passageway  along  the 
back  of  the  building.  In  the  front  there  are  two  ordinary  half  win- 
dows to  each  pen,  and  a  door  for  the  ducks.  There  is  a  window 
every  20  feet  in  the  back  of  these  buildings  for  ventilation.  In  sum- 
mer the  sashes  are  taken  out  and  the  openings  covered  with  netting. 
In  cleaning  out  the  building  the  litter  is  thrown  out  through  the 
front  windows  where  it  can  be  conveniently  removed  by  team.   The 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  105 

floor  is  well  bedded  with  sawdust  and  in  mid-winter  with  meadow 
hay. 

"During-  the  laying  season  the  ducks  are  kept  shut  in  the 
house  until  9  o'clock  in  the  morning,  that  they  may  lay  in  the  house 
instead  of  on  the  ground  in  the  yard.  No  boxes  are  furnished  for 
nests;  they  make  their  own  right  in  the  sawdust. 

"During  the  winter  one  drake  is  provided  for  every  five  ducks. 
but  after  June  1st  one  is  sufficient  for  ten  ducks,  and  it  is  then  best 
to  lessen  the  number  of  drakes  one-half. 

"Pekin  ducks  are  very  nervous  timid  creatures,  and  at  night 
will  dodge  the  shadow  from  a  light  in  great  terror.  If  startled  in 
the  dark  by  one  jostling  against  another,  they  become  so  frightened 
that  the  whole  lot  may  rush  about  in  excitement  and  terror  until 
morning.  Unless  this  is  prevented,  they  run  off  much  flesh  in  a 
very  short  time  and  otherwise  injure  themselves.  To  prevent  loss 
in  this  way,  the  Webers  light  the  houses  and  yards  at  night. 
Every  house  and  yard  where  ducks  that  have  feathered  out  are  kept 
is  provided  with  a  large  street  lamp  such  as  are  frequently  used 
for  lighting  country  towns.  Young  ducks  while  in  the  brooders  do 
not  need  to  have  their  quarters  illuminated  at  night. 

"During  the  height  of  the  incubating  season,  the  Webers  fill  a 
six  hundred  (hen)  egg  incubator  every  other  day  and  therefore 
have  a  machine  hatching  ducklings  every  two  days. 

"Usually  it  takes  about  two  days  for  all  the  ducklings  to  hatch. 
Twice  each  day,  those  that  have  dried  off  are  put  beneath  the  trays, 
where  they  are  left  for  24  hours  and  then  transferred  to  the  brooder- 
house,  where  they  are  at  once  watered  and  fed  with  rolled  oats  and 
bread  crumbs.  Each  downy  duckling  is  counted  as  they  are  taken 
from  the  box  in  which  they  are  brought  from  the  incubators,  their 
bills  dipped  in  a  pail  of  water,  and  then  dropped  upon  the  feed  board 
covered  with  bread  crumbs.  When  their  beak  touches  the  board, 
some  of  the  dry  food  adheres  to  it,  is  tasted  and  immediately  they 
search  for  more.  As  soon  as  they  have  eaten,  they  are  put  under 
the  hovers,  which  are  at  first  kept  at  ioo°  and  then  gradually  reduced 
in  about  four  days  to  8o°.  The  Webers  buy  stale  bakers'  bread  by 
the  ton.  They  have  no  bowel  trouble  among  their  ducklings,  be- 
cause they  are  so  strong  and  vigorous.  It  is  only  those  that  have 
weak  vitality  that  die.  These  little  ducklings  are  fed  the  above  five 
times  daily  for  about  a  week.  The  very  early  ducks  are  fed  on  rolled 
oats  and  sweet  milk  until  they  are  two  weeks  old  and  sometimes 
longer. 

"At  three  weeks  of  age  a  more  growing  food  is  given  the  young 
ducks.  This  is  composed  of  equal  parts  shorts,  gluten  feed  and 
ground  oats,  to  which  is  added  five  per  cent,  beef  scraps.  Enough 
'red  dog"  flour  or  fine  middlings  is  added  to  make  it  stick  together. 
This  is  fed  four  times  daily.  The  food  is  fed  in  troughs.  Wooden 
troughs  eight  inches  deep,  nine  or  ten  broad  and  five  by  fourteen 
feet  long  also  make  the  best  receptacles  for  water.  Green  food  is 
also  given  them  once  per  day.  At  eight  weeks  of  age  their  food 
consists  of  four-fifths  corn  meal  and  one-fifth  low  grade  flour  and 


106  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

ten  per  cent,  beef  scraps,  and  is  given  three  times  daily.  They  re- 
ceive once  per  day  all  the  clover  or  fodder  corn  cut  up  fine  that  they 
can  eat.  The  ducklings  are  fed  green  food  from  start  to  finish.  The 
\vebers  find  waste  lettuce  leaves  most  excellent  for  little  ducklings 
and  they  buy  them  by  the  wagon  load  when  they  can  get  them,  and 
think  of  putting  up  a  hot-house  in  which  they  may  raise  lettuce  sown 
broadcast.  They  buy  daily  many  cans  of  skimmed  milk  at  6  and  7 
cents  per  can  of  8J  quarts  and  mix  it  with  the  food  for  fattening 
ducks.  As  soon  as  the  young  ducks  reach  a  weight  of  5  lb.,  which 
they  do  at  about  ten  weeks,  they  are  killed  and  marketed. 

"If  one  should  ask  the  Weber  Bros,  what  are  the  worst  snags 
to  be  avoided  in  following  this  business,  they  would  probably  say : 
Do  not  breed  "in  and  in"  or  raise  breeding  stock  from  anything 
younger  than  yearlings.  Do  not  fail  to  give  your  young  birds,  to 
be  used  for  breeders,  more  growing  food  and  more  freedom  than  you 
give  the  ducks  that  are  fatted  and  killed.  Mate  up  before  Novem- 
ber 1,  and  be  sure  to  feed  plenty  of  cooked  vegetables  and  green 
food  as  well  as  the  right  grain,  if  you  want  the  eggs  to  be  fertilized 
early  in  the  year. 

"Their  unusual  success  in  securing  a  high  per  cent,  of  fertile 
eggs  early  in  the  season  should  cause  the  beginner  in  artificial  duck 
culture,  at  least,  to  heed  this  advice  in  every  particular." 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  107 


CHAPTER  X. 

Turkey  and  Guinea  Broilers  for  Market — Valuable  Pointers  on  the 
Care  and  Marketing  of  Turkeys. 

The  Feather,  of  Washington,  D.  C,  published  the  following, 
which  is  not  only  interesting  but  instructive  reading: 

The  use  of  the  turkey  broilers  in  all  of  the  clubhouses,  restau- 
rants and  high  quality  hotels  in  the  large  cities  is  greatly  on  the  in- 
crease. For  the  purpose  of  information  a  number  of  chefs  in  the 
many  popular  resorts  of  the  cities  have  been  interviewed  on  the  con- 
sumption of  turkey  poults,  and  general  opinion  seems  to  be  that 
the  people  would  gladly  use  them  isf  they  could  only  have  them  dur- 
ing a  continued  season  of  the  year,  but  few  of  them  ever  reach  the 
market.  The  use  of  turkey  poults  for  broilers  might  be  made  profita- 
ble to  those  who  do  not  hatch  the  turkey  eggs  that  are  laid  late  in 
the  season  simply  because  it  is  thoroughly  understood  that  these 
late  hatched  poults  cannot  be  grown  to  roasting  size  in  time  for  the 
winter  sales.  Such  late  hatched  poults  never  make  good  large- 
sized  turkeys. 

But  all  of  these  eggs  that  are  laid  late  in  the  season  might  be 
readily  hatched  and  raised,  and  as  soon  as  the  young  poults  reach 
the  broiler  size  they  may  be  disposed  of  for  turkey  broilers  in  the 
•city  markets.  It  seems  scarcely  probable  that  there  is  a  possibility 
of  overdoing  this,  and  those  who  make  the  attempt  to  grow  these 
late  hatched  poults  to  turkey  broilers  should  make  their  plans  for 
disposing  of  these  some  time  ahead  of  the  time  when  they  are  fit  for 
broilers.  This  can  be  done  through  correspondence  with  the  com- 
mission or  poultry  dealers  of  the  large  cities. 

It  is  always  better  to  communicate  with  these  dealers  and  find 
•out  from  them  just  when  the  demand  will  be  the  best  for  these 
turkey  broilers,  how  they  wish  to  have  them  dressed,  and  what 
days  in  the  week  would  be  the  best  for  the  product  to  reach  the 
market. 

All  these  little  conditions  should  be  thought  of  and  attended 
to  in  advance  so  that  there  will  not  be  the  possibility  of  killing  and 
dressing  the  turkey  broilers  and  sending  them  into  market  without 
knowing  just  when  and  where  the  demand  will  be.  Quite  often  the 
market  is  glutted  on  certain  days  because  every  one  seems  to  think- 
that  they  should  all  ship  on  a  certain  day.  If  it  is  the  hope  of  a 
locality  to  ship  to  market  all  their  product  on  Monday,  those  who 
delay  shipping  until  Tuesday  night  usually  get  the  best  of  the  bar- 
gain. This  simply  illustrates  the  fact  that  one  should  be  careful 
and  watch  out  so  as  not  to  ship  into  market  the  products  until  they 


to8  Money   in   Broilers   and    Squabs. 

are  needed.  Always  try  to  be  in  communication  with  some  one  as 
to  the  best  time  to  ship,  and  by  taking  advantage  of  this  it  will  be 
possible  at  all  times  to  dispose  of  everything  that  you  have  to  sell 
at  a  profit.  Never  get  caught  on  an  overloaded  market  and  lose  the 
whole  shipment. 

Guinea  Broilers. 

The  demand  for  Guinea  hens  of  all  sizes  and  ages  is  largely  on 
the  increase. 

The  Guinea  broiler  at  a  pound  each  was  very  popular  the  past 
season  at  watering  places  and  in  the  cities  as  well.  The  Guinea 
broiler  at  about  a  pound  or  a  pound  and  a  quarter  can  be  made  use 
of  as  a  substitute  for  many  kinds  of  game  birds,  and  while  it  may 
be  considerable  time  before  they  will  be  as  extensively  used  as  are 
the  broiler  chicken  the  day  is  not  far  distant  when  every  single 
Guinea  broiler  that  can  be  grown  will  have  ready  sale  in  the  city 
markets.  The  laws  prohibiting  the  cold  storage  of  game  birds,  sell- 
ing them  out  of  season,  has  made  it  necessary  for  the  high  class 
restaurants  and  hotels  to  have  a  substitute  for  game  birds.  There 
seems  to  be  nothing  that  meets  the  demand  so  well  as  does  the 
Guinea  broiler  except  the  home  grown  or  domestic  pheasant. 

The  increasing  scarcity  of  game  has  increased  the  demand  for 
various  poultry  products  out  of  the  usual  line.  Among  these  are 
turkey  broilers,  squabs,  small  chicken  broilers,  and  Guinea  broilers. 
A  New  York  dealer  who  has  had  to  pay  top  prices  for  young 
Guinea  chickens  writes  as  follows  with  regard  to  this  specialty: 

"Young  Guineas  have  been  coming  into  favor  since  the  passage 
of  the  stringent  game  laws  which  have  prevented  dealers  and  restau- 
rant men  from  getting  sufficient  game  to  supply  their  wants.  The 
Guineas  are  wanted  when  weighing  from  three-quarters  to  ij 
pounds  delivered  dead  with  feathers  on  and  selling  at  $i  per  pair. 
The  restaurant  men  and  summer-hotel  people  will  take  a?l  they  can 
get." 

Pointers  on  Turkeys. 

Take  young  turkeys  from  the  nest  as  soon  as  they  are  dry,  to 
prevent  them  from  mashing,  wrap  them  up  and  keep  in  a  warm- 
place,  says  a  corespondent  in  American  Agriculturist.  Give  no 
food  for  a  day  and  night ;  there  is  a  residium  of  yolk  to  be  adsorbed' 
and  voided.    Too  early  feeding  interferes  with  this  process. 

Cloud's  Poultry  News  gives  these  pointers :  As  killing  time 
draws  nearer  feed  oftener.  Give  a  variety.  Don't  depend  on  corn 
alone,  and  don't  expect  to  make  good  turkeys  with  sour,  damaged 
grain.  Select  the  best  hens  for  breeding  purposes,  and  do  not  selT 
these  nor  exchange  for  poor  stock.  Don't  take  everyone's  advice 
on  how  to  grow  turkeys.    Find  out  for  yourself. 

Mrs.  Magruder,  after  first  week  gives  her  turkeys  curds  of  but- 
termilk or  clabber,  scalded  and  pressed  dry  from  whey.  Sprinkles- 
occasionally  with  red  pepper.  Also  feeds  plain  corn  cake,  unsalted, 
crumbled  find  and  moistened  with  a  little  water  or  sweet  milk; 
these  are  the  proper  foods  for  young  turkeys.     Feeds  four  or  five 


Money   in   Broilers   and   Squabs.  109 

times  a  day,  in  an  earthenware  plate  or  vessel.  Turkeys  are 
fastidious  as  to  clean  platters  and  food.  Does  not  give  raw  meal, 
dough,  buttermilk  or  sour  milk.  These  produce  diarrhoea,  and  this 
disease  is  the  mortal  foe  of  the  turks. 

The  best  way  to  kill  turkeys  is  to  tie  their  feet  together,  hang 
the  bird  on  a  pole,  cut  the  throat  so  as  to  bleed  freely.  Dry  pick 
them,  leaving  head  and  wings  on.  After  picked,  dip  in  hot  water, 
and  then  in  cold.    This  will  give  the  skin  a  fresher  look. 

Stock  should  be  changed  as  often  as  every  third  year,  says 
Miss  E.  A.  Murray,  in  Farm  and  Home.  Nature  puts  her  protest 
on  inbreeding  by  giving  warning,  with  club-footed  and  ill-condi- 
tioned chicks. 

When  a  turkey  is  the  least  bit  indisposed,  it  will  draw  its  head 
down  between  its  shoulders  and  refuse  food. 

"In  spite  of  all  our  care,  young  turkeys  have  a  disagreeable 
habit  of  dying,"  writes  Miss  E.  A.  Murray.  "The  causes  are  filth, 
close  confinement  and  improper  food.  Prevention  is  better  than 
cure.  I  do  not  have  much  luck  in  doctoring  the  symptoms.  I  try 
to  remove  the  cause.  I  occasionally  use  a  few  remedies,  a  little  hot 
milk  for  a  weakling,  a  little  cayenne  pepper  in  their  food,  a  small 
dose  of  sweet  oil  for  constipation,  thorough  searching  for  lice,  and 
greasing  under  the  wings  for  the  same.  For  gapes  the  same  reme- 
dies we  apply  as  to  chickens.  I  never  saw  a  turkey  that  got  its  liv- 
ing in  the  fields  that  had  the  gapes." 

"The  gobbler  comes  in  as  a  factor,"  writes  Miss  Murray.  "If 
he  isvwhat  he  ought  to  be,  he  will  go  with  the  mother,  help  her  take 
care  of  the  chicks  during  the  day,  and  hover  over  them  at  night, 
and  if  she  lays  again,  take  entire  charge  of  the  flock.  I  have  seen 
hen  turkeys  fly  up  into  a  tree  with  the  older  ones,  and  leave  the 
younger  ones  on  the  ground,  and  my  old  fine  gobbler  has  come 
down  off  his  perch  and  hovered  them  night  after  night.  I  have  seen 
him  coax  with  exquisite  tact  and  patience,  the  timid  turkeys  raised 
by  a  hen,  and  when  he  succeeded  in  gaining  their  confidence,  what 
a  proud  and  loving  father  he  was." 

The  editor  of  the  Poultry  Chum,  who  is  also  an  extensive  turkey 
grower,  made  the  experiment  of  placing  four  birds  in  a  pen  and 
feeding  meal,  boiled  potatoes  and  oats.  Four  other  turkeys  of  the 
same  brood  were  at  the  same  time  confined  in  another  pen  and  fed 
the  same  diet,  but  with  the  addition  of  a  pint  of  very  finely  pul- 
verized charcoal  mixed  with  their  food.  They  had  also  a  plentiful 
supply  of  broken  charcoal  in  their  pen.  The  eight  were  killed  the 
same  day,  and  there  was  a  difference  of  one  and  a  half  pounds  each 
in  favor  of  the  fowls  which  had  been  supplied  with  charcoal,  they 
being  much  the  fattest,  and  the  meat  being  superior  in  point  of 
tenderness  and  flavor. 

Prof.  Cushman,  in  American  Agriculturist,  says  if  the  little 
turkeys  die  immediately  after  hatching,  and  before  they  have  been 
fed  or  watered,  they  probably  are  from  weak  or  runout  stock,  or 
have  been  improperly  incubated. 


no  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

I  have  learned  by  experience  that  the  more  you  let  a  turkey 
alone  after  it  is  big  enough  to  hunt,  the  better  it  is  off,  says  a  cor- 
respondent in  Western  Rural.  Feed  them  regularly,  let  them  roost 
out  of  doors,  and  they  are  a  very  healthy  fowl. 

You  never  lose  money  on  young  and  growing  turkeys  if  you 
keep  them  until  after  the  holidays  are  over,  says  Western  Rural. 
Turkeys  are  light  eaters  in  the  whole,  and  constantly  growing  until 
one  year  old,  and  it  costs  no  more  to  raise  a  good  sized  turkey  than 
a  little  one. 

At  certain  seasons  of  the  year  turkeys  are  in  great  demand, 
says  Iowa  Homestead,  and  it  is  safe  to  say  that  a  pound  of  turkey 
meat  is  worth  as  much  as  one  and  one-half  to  two  pounds  of  pork, 
and  often  three  times  as  much,  although  the  cost  of  the  two  does 
not  differ  greatly. 

Potatoes,  swedes,  mangolds,  boiled  soft  and  mixed  with  ground 
oats,  barleymeal,  buckwheatmeal  or  cornmeal  constitute  good  fat- 
tening foods.  The  French  fatten  with  beetroot,  artichokes  or  pota- 
toes, boiled  and  mixed  with  meal,  and  give  acorns,  chestnuts  and 
walnuts.  The  latter,  they  consider,  give  a  delicious  flavor  to  the 
meat. 

When  you  handle  your  turkeys,  especially  if  they  are  large 
ones,  be  careful  about  their  claws,  writes  C.  P.  Reynolds,  in  Amer- 
ican Fancier.  A  slight  scratch  is  quite  painful  and  may  even  prove 
serious.  The  writer  has  just  had  a  little  practical  experience  in  this 
line  and  a  "game"  hand  is  the  result.  A  gloved  hand  is  the  safest. 
W.  H.  Rudd,  in  American  Agriculturist,  says  there  has  been 
quite  a  demand  for  young  turkeys  to  broil,  during  the  early  and  late 
summer,  for  several  years  past,  and  the  demand  seems  to  be  increas- 
ing. We  should  think  a  good  weight  at  three  months  of  age  would 
be  three  to  four  pounds  each,  and  this  is  the  weight  desired  for 
broilers. 

The  question  is  often  asked,  can  turkeys  eggs  be  successfully 
hatched  under  common  hens?  says  a  writer  in  Tri-State  News. 
There  is  no  doubt  but  what  it  can  be  done,  as  has  been  repeatedly 
demonstrated,  but  whether  one  can  get  the  best  quality  of  stock 
from  poults  so  hatched  and  reared,  is  quite  a  different  matter.  We 
have  entirely  given  up  the  idea  of  trying  to  raise  young  turkeys  by 
any  means  other  than  by  their  natural  mothers.  While  it  is  very 
true  that  turkeys  can  be  reared  by  domestic  hens  with  more  or  less 
success,  it  is  entirely  impossible  to  attain  the  lusty,  vigorous 
growth  of  stock  that  have  developed  under  the  charge  of  the  mother 
turkey. 

Perches  should  not  be  more  than  two  feet  from  the  ground. 
Scalded  curd  or  ordinary  Dutch  cheese  is  the  ideal  food  for 
young  turkeys. 

Nothing  is  so  objectionable  as  a  turkey  with  a  crooked  breast 
when  trussed. 

Some  turkey  raisers  do  not  give  the  young  water  to  drink  until 
they  are  a  month  old. 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 


ill 


ii2  Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

While  fattening,  turkeys  require  plenty  of  ventilation,  fresh 
air,  and  should  have  a  good  supply  of  grit,  sand  and  lime  rubbish 
to  aid  digestion. 

Three  weeks  are  considered  sufficient  time  for  fattening  the 
hens,  and  a  little  longer  for  the  cocks,  provided  the  birds  are  in 
good  condition  when  put  up. 

"I  would  not  advise  anyone,  however,  to  embark  in  turkey 
rearing  unless  the  locality  be  a  dry  one ;  for  a  damp,  marshy,  cold 
soil  is  fatal,  and  no  amount  of  drainage  can  make  it  fit  for  turkeys," 
writes  a  correspondent  in  Rural  New-Yorker.  "No  matter  how 
rocky,  sandy  or  broken  it  may  be,  the  fowls  will  be  healthy ;  in  fact, 
if  the  soil  does  not  contain  sand  and  gravel,  both  should  be  pro- 
vided." 

The  turkey  crop  hatched  previous  to  June  I  should  attain  good 
growth  by  last  of  November,  the  cock  birds  reaching  10  or  12 
pounds. 

Charcoal  is  a  valuable  article  in  the  diet  of  turkeys,  both  old  and 
young. 

A  Kansas  lady  feeds  her  turkey  chicks  every  two  hours  for  the 
first  10  days. 

Geo.  Enty  says  that  on  any  ground  upon  which  people  can  live 
turkeys  will  thrive. 

Patience  should  be  the  rule  in  raising  turkeys. 

A  little  sand  should  be  mixed  daily  with  soft  feed  for  the 
young. 

Cleanliness  prevents  much  of  the  mortality  among  the 
young. 

Turkeys  cannot  be  successfully  brooded  artificially. 

The  bulk  of  the  turkey  crop  is  brought  out  by  hens. 

The  largest  flocks  and  the  most  thrifty  looking  turkeys,  are 
found  on  farms  having  high,  dry  land,  which  has  a  light  growth  of 
grass,  and  where  a  new  breeding  gobbler  has  lately  been  introduced. 

"Whatever  you  feed,  don't  feed  wheat  bread ;  you  might  as  well 
feed  them  putty,  in  my  opinion.  Though  only  a  farmer's  wife,  I 
have  had  good  success  raising  turkeys  on  a  small  scale  for  twenty 
years,"  says  Mrs.  Lottie  E.  Waring,  in  Coleman's  Rupal  World. 

Infertility  in  turkey  eggs  is  mainly  due  to  an  overfat  condition 
of  the  breeding  stock. 

Fermentation  in  the  crop,  common  in  turkeys,  is  prevented  in 
the  feeding  of  charcoal. 

If  you  begin  feeding  the  turkeys  off  a  board,  it  will  be  difficult 
to  get  them  to  eat  off  the  ground,  and  vice-versa. 

It  is  said  that  in  Scotland  when  the  young  turkeys  droop  they 
are  given  a  drop  of  whisky;  in  France  they  get  a  teaspoonful  of 
wine. 

Mrs.  Stella  G.  Northington,  in  Fancy  Fowls,  advises  granulated 
oatmeal,  cracked  corn  and  whole  wheat  as  a  good  evening  ration 
for  young  turkeys. 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  113 

A  single  union  of  a  male  and  female  fertilizes  all  the  eggs  the 
hen  will  lay  for  one  season,  hence  one  gobbler  will  suffice  for  twenty 
or  more  hens. 

Young  gobblers  may  be  distinguished  from  the  females  by 
being  heavier,  more  masculine  in  appearance,  more  caruncutated 
on  the  head,  and  a  development  of  the  "lassels"  on  the  breast,  says 
Poultry  and  Pets.    A  little  experience  may  be  required  at  first. 

It  is  not  the  largest  turkey  that  sells  soonest,  says  Poultry 
Keeper,  but  the  fat  and  plump  bird,  of  medium  size,  for  which  an 
extra  price  can  be  obtained  at  all  seasons. 

At  the  age  when  turkeys  begin  to  acquire  the  red  head,  possibly 
it  is  accompanied  by  a  fever  similar  to  the  moulting  fever  in  fowls, 
•says  a  New  York  turkey  raiser.  At  this  period,  feed  well  and  watch 
for  vermin.  The  "head  louse"  is  found  on  top  of  head,  nape  of  neck 
and  under  the  ears.  Dust  frequently  with  insect  powder  or  grease 
with  lard.  The  small  gray  "mite"  is  hard  to  find ;  it  clings  closely 
under  the  throat  and  beneath  the  wings,  and  is  the  most  blood 
thirsty  of  the  vermin.  Anoint  well  with  lard,  into  which  is  mixed 
a  little  coal  oil.  Use  the  kerosene  wash  and  sulphur  freely  about 
the  coops  and  roosting  place.  On  the  ninth  week  the  brood  may  be 
left  to  care  for  themselves  night  and  morning. 

Tame  the  young  turkeys  so  they  will  eat  from  your  hand,  and 
they  will  not  be  frightened  when  you  are  compelled  to  handle  them. 

The  common  run  of  turkeys  sent  to  the  New  York  markets  do 
•not  average  more  than  8  or  9  pounds. 

R.  E.  Phelps,  in  American  Agriculturist,  says  the  first  re- 
quisite in  turkey  raising  is  good  stock.  The  fowls  should  be  healthy, 
of  good  shape,  with  heavy  bodies  and  not  too  much  leg;  the  hens 
either  one  or  two  years  old.  If  older  the  eggs  are  fewer  in  number 
and  more  likely  to  have  soft  shells.  The  gobbler  should  be  well 
matured,  and  weigh  not  less  than  18  to  20  pounds.  Gobblers  and 
hens  should  never  be  selected  from  the  same  flock. 

Mrs.  Cora  Halbrook,  in  Poultry  Keeper,  prepares  the  nests  for 
sitting  hens  on  turkey  eggs,  as  follows :  "Prepare  the  nest  by  tak- 
ing several  newspapers,  put  them  all  around  and  all  over  the  nests, 
and  just  leave  a  piece  large  enough  for  the  hen  to  get  out  or  in. 
Then  put  about  2J  inches  of  ashes  on  the  paper,  and  cover  with 
•enough  hay  to  keep  the  eggs  off  the  ashes.  Then  I  tie  moth  balls 
in  small  rags,  one  in  a  rag,  and  place  two  of  these  in  a  nest, 
which  I  think  prevent  lice.  You  can  get  a  pint  for  five  cents :  (they 
are  very  poisonous  and  must  be  kept  away  from  children).  We  set 
11  eggs  under  a  hen." 

Turkey  raisers  make  a  mistake  when  they  sell  off  all  there  older 
birds  and  retain  young  ones  for  breeding  purposes,  says  Texas 
Farm  and  Ranch.  The  turkey  is  not  fully  mature  until  two  years, 
is  at  its  best  at  three  years,  and  nearly  as  good  at  four. 

In  killing,  bleed  freely. 

After  the  holidays  8  to  10  pound  birds  sell  best. 

Give  fattening  turkeys  all  the  clean  water  they  will  drink. 


H4  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

A  cock  at  12  months  of  age  should  range  16  to  20  odd  pounds, 
according  to  the  breed  and  how  they  are  cared  for. 

Rural  New-Yorker  gives  the  following  pointers  on  marketing 
turkey  feathers:  The  quills  from  the  third  joint  or  tip  end  of  the 
wing  are  called  pointers,  and  should  be  kept  separate.  In  packing, 
keep  tail  and  wing  feathers  separate.  Tie  each  kind  in  bundles  by 
itself,  and  press  the  bundles  in  the  boxes  tightly.  All  feathers  must 
be  clean,  sound  and  dry-picked.  The  wing  quills  which  have  full 
plumage  on  both  sides  of  the  quill,  which  come  from  the  first  and 
second  joints  of  the  wing  next  the  body,  are  more  valuable  than, 
and  should  be  kept  separate  from,  the  pointers.  The  tail  feathers 
should  be  kept  by  themselves,  and  are  the  most  available.  The  short 
tail  and  wing  quills,  if  saved,  should  be  kept  separate  from  the  long 
ones,  as  they  depreciate  their  value  if  mixed  with  them.  Prices  in 
New  York  are  about  as  follows:  Prime  tail  quills,  from  25  to  30 
cents  per  pound ;  mixed  tail  and  wing  quills,  about  20  cents  per 
pound;  mixed  wing,  tail  and  pointer  quills,  about  12  to  15  cents  per 
pound ;  short  tail  and  wing  quills,  about  7  to  8  cents  per  pound ; 
pointers,  about  4  cents  per  pound.  The  directions  for  shipping  are 
to  mark  the  correct  weight  and  tare  on  the  boxes,  also  the  name  of 
the  shipper,  and  ship  as  "turkey  quills."  The  prices  named  may 
vary  from  time  to  time,  but  are  approximately  correct. 

A  correspondent  in  American  Agriculturist  gives  this  method 
for  fattening  choice  turkeys :  In  the  morning  feed  a  mash  com- 
posed of  corn,  barley  or  buckwheat  meal,  mixed  with  skim  milk,  and 
a  few  sweet  potatoes  added,  with  some  sharp  grit  to  aid  digestion. 
Also  mix  with  this  feed  a  good  brand  of  condition  powder ;  it 
sharpens  the  appetite,  and  causes  them  to  gain  flesh  faster.  At  noon 
give  cracked  corn,  buckwheat  or  barley,  and  at  night  give  a  supper 
of  whole  or  cracked  corn,  with  an  occasional  feed  of  buckwheat.  Do 
not  use  new  corn,  as  it  is  apt  to  produce  bowel  trouble,  but  feed 
well  seasoned  corn,  one  year  old.  That  over  one  year  old  is  apt  to 
make  the  flesh  courser  and  not  so  white  and  delicate  as  that  fed  on 
nice,  white  one-year-old  corn.  It  is  best  not  to  coop  turkeys  while 
fattening ;'they  almost  invariably  lose  their  appetites  and  become 
sickly.  Turkeys  are  very  active  and  must  have  plenty  of  fresh  air 
and  liberty  or  they  will  not  thrive.  If  fed  all  they  will  eat  three 
times  a  day,  they  are  not  inclined  to  roam,  but  will  sit  around  quietly 
and  will  seem  to  enjoy  resting  in  the  sunshine.  Turkeys  intended 
for  the  later  markets  should  not  be  so  heavily  fed  as  those  intended 
for  sale  in  a  few  weeks.  Long  continued  heavy  feeding  is  not  profit- 
able and  is  a  source  of  great  loss  among  turkey  growers.  Turkeys 
should  be  killed  at  once  when  ready  for  market.  If  kept  over  this 
time  they  soon  begin  to  lose  in  flesh  and  will  prove  unprofitable. 

While  it  is  undoubtedly  good  for  the  turkeys  to  roost  out  of 
doors  during  the  warm  weather  of  summer,  as  well  as  the  pleasant 
fall  months,  we  cannot  think  but  that  having  been  exposed  all  win- 
ter to  the  fierceness  of  the  blasts,  will  injure  them  more  or  less,  says 
American  Stock-Keeper.  Feeding  the  turkeys  regularly,  and  after- 
ward driving  them  every  eve  into  a  commodious  s.hed  where  they 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  1 15 

can  find  accommodations  for  roosting,  they  will  soon  learn,  to  seek 
that  shelter  for  the  night,  and  will  be  more  secure  from  the  depreda- 
tions of  poultry  thieves. 

A  "Canadian  correspondent  of  the  American  Agriculturist  says 
turkeys  are  as  easy  to  raise  as  chickens  if  one  has  the  right  stock. 
But  most  people  pick  out  all  the  largest  birds  to  market  at  Thanks- 
giving and  Christmas,  and  keep  the  small  ones,  with  the  impres- 
sion that  they  will  grow  if  given  time.  This  is  a  great  mistake,  as 
in  a  flock  you  will  always  find  a  few  better  developed,  bigger-boned 
birds,  *nd  these  invariably  have  the  constitution  we  need  for  breed- 
ing purposes.  To  make  a  success  select  the  best  hens  in  the  flock  ; 
good  deep,  plucky  birds,  with  big  bone  and  short  legs,  and  dispose 
of  the  long-legged,  loose-built  ones.  He  finds  the  Bronze  the 
hardiest,  but  a  cross  with  the  wild  would  perhaps  still  further  im- 
prove them.  The  biggest  drawback  with  the  wild  cross  is,  they 
are  hard  to  keep  near  the  home,  and  are  easily  frightened.  Having 
selected  your  breeding  stock,  which  is  best  to  do  in  the  fall,  winter 
them  and  let  them  run  out  all  the  time. 

An  English  turkey  raiser  says:  "I  make  it  a  hard  and  fast  rule 
(if  at  home)  to  feed  my  turkeys  myself  every  morning,  as  by  so 
doing,  I  see  at  once  if  any  of  the  birds  are  ailing.  If  ever  you  see  a 
turkey  refusing  its  morning  meal,  you  may  be  quite  sure  it  requires 
attention.  Sometimes,  when  5  or  6  months  old,  you  see  one  lagging 
behind  the  rest,  and  either  refusing  food  altogether  or  just  pecking 
a  few  grains,  then  walk  away.  Taken  in  time  this  state  of  affairs  is 
soon  remedied.  Catch  the  turkey  and  put  in  a  warm,  dry  building, 
and  mix  half  a  teaspoonful  of  lard,  or  unsalted  butter,  with  a  half 
teaspoonful  of  cayenne  pepper,  and  make  it  into  small  pills  with  a 
little  flour.  These  pills  I  give  at  night  and  feed  very  sparingly  next 
day.  The  following  morning  the  bird  generally  goes  out  all  right, 
and  quite  ready  for  breakfast.  Should  this  not  be  the  case,  I  have 
often  given  half  of  one  of  Carter's  Little  Liver  Pills  with  good  ef- 
fect." 

About  four  dozen  eggs  are  given  as  an  average  for  the  annual 
output  of  the  turkey. 

The  first  eight  weeks  of  the  young  turkeys  life  require  constant 
care. 

Even  July  hatched  turkeys  can  be  made  profitable. 

Seven  eggs  is  about  all  a  common  hen  can  cover. 

Keep  the  young  shut  up  while  the  dew  is  on  the  grass. 

L.  V.  Hopkins,  in  American  Agriculturist,  says  the  first  dose 
that  he  gives  his  little  turkeys  is  a  pill  in  the  shape  of  one  whole 
black  pepper.  Each  little  mouth  is  forced  open  and  the  pepper 
pressed  down. 

"I  have  always  thought  that  the  delicacy  of  young  turkeys  is 
due  in  a  measure  to  the  rapidity  with  which  feathers  are  grown," 
says  L.  V.  Hopkins.  A  young  chicken  retains  its  down  for  several 
weeks  until  its  body  is  well  grown,  but  a  young  turkey  begins  at 
once  to  put  out  large  feathers  on  its  wings  and  tail.  This  enormou 
feather  growth  saps  the  vitality  of  the  body  and  leaves  it  an  easy 


n6  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

prey  to  weakness  and  disease.  To  overcome  this  tendency  should 
be  the  aim  of  every  breeder. 

The  following  method  of  fattening  for  market  is  recommended 
by  Mrs.  A.  W.  Trumble,  in  Practical  Farmer:  "Usually  fed  corn 
exclusively,  but  sometimes  would  feed  small  potatoes  cooked  and 
mashed  with  cornmeal,  fed  warm.  They  were  always  fed  all  they 
would  eat  but  had  their  liberty,  never  shutting  up  until  the  day  be- 
fore killing.  They  were  dressed  in  best  possible  manner  and  sent 
to  a  city  market  a  few  days  before  Thanksgiving  Day,  and  I  never 
remember  getting  a  low  price.  We  kept  no  pure  breed.  I  think  a 
medium-size  turkey  sells  better  and  will  be  full  grown  and  plump, 
while  the  extra  large  take  longer  to  mature  and  if  dressed  before 
fully  grown  often  show  pin  feathers." 

The  most  delicious,  juicy  broiler  that  an  epicure  can  fancy  is  a 
turkey  poult  of  about  six  pound  weight,  or  when  about  two-thirds 
grown,  and  of  medium  size.  Many  a  young  male  two-thirds  grown 
would  be  too  large  to  broil ;  if  rather  large,  however,  the  breast  may 
be  gushed,  and  thus  more  easily  cooked  through,  but  it  must  not  be 
dried. 

The  Epitomist  advises,  when  the  wings  of  the  turkey  begin  to 
be  the  largest  part  of  it,  take  the  poult  up  and  pull  two  or  three  of 
the  long  feathers  out  of  the  wings  at  the  point,  holding  the  wing 
tightly  and  giving  a  quick  jerk.  We  do  not  know  what  causes  these 
long  feathers  to  grow  in,  but  we  do  know  that  when  they  are  pulled 
out  the  chances  are  very  good  for  that  turkey  to  grace  a  Thanks- 
giving festival. 

Turkeys  like  to  roost  as  high  as  possible  in  the  house ;  there- 
fore, the  perches  should  be  on  a  level  to  prevent  them  breathing  foul 
air,  as  they  are  more  subject  to  roup  and  cold  than  any  other  fowls. 

It  should  always  be  borne  in  mind  that  unless  the  stock  birds 
are  large  it  is  impossible  to  get  the  young  ones  to  a  good  weight; 
therefore  it  is  best  to  purchase  the  largest  and  finest  stock  obtain- 
able to  breed  from. 

Many  farmers  allow  their  young  turkeys  to  run  in  the  stubble 
fields,  which  is  a  good  plan,  as  they  not  only  pick  up  a  great  deal  of 
loose  corn,  but  often  get  dainty  morsels  of  green  stuff,  besides  which 
they  have  plenty  of  fresh  air  and  exercise. 

Let  no  novice  in  this  business  suppose  he  can  succeed  without 
great  care  and  prudence.  Young  turkeys  are  the  most  tender  of  all 
young  fowls,  and  need  the  most  care.  This  care  commences  with 
a  good  selection  of  the  finest,  earliest  and  heaviest  turkeys  for 
breeders. 

The  American  Poultry  Journal  gives  this  method  for  fattening 
for  market  when  fattening  time  comes :  The  turkeys  should  be 
confined  in  a  shed  spacious  enough  to  let  them  move  about  some- 
what, but  not  large  enough  to  grant  them  exercise.  Low  roosts 
should  be  placed.  Half  an  hour  in  the  morning  ought  to  be  allowed 
them  for  roaming  about  outside,  where  grit  can  be  found  and  where 
they  can  stretch  their  legs.  After  that  they  should  be  called  into 
the  shed,  by  feeding  them  only  in  that  spot,  and  so  left  for  the  day. 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  117 

On  cold  wet  days  they  need  not  be  let  out.  The  feed  should  be  put 
into  troughs,  set  low  on  a  broad  base,  and  located  where  the  fowls 
will  not  soil  them.  The  feeding  place  might  be  under  a  shed  ad- 
joining the  shed  where  they  roost.  The  morning  meal  at  first  may 
consist  of  barley  meal  and  middlings ;  and  skim  milk  is  desirable  as 
a  mixing  fluid.  Oatmeal  is  proper  as  the  days  go  on,  and  minced  fat 
should  be  added  during  the  last  10  days.  The  evening  meal  should 
include  boiled  corn,  and  the  mess  ought  to  be  mixed  stirrer  than  for 
the  morning  feed.  Whole  grain  is  good  in  moderation,  scattered  on 
the  ground. 

Never  feed  cornmeal  to  young. 

As  a  rule,  turkey  eggs  hatch  well. 

Don't  breed  from  excessive  weights. 

Medium-sized  but  plump  turkeys  are  marketable  all  the  year 
round,  so  that  at  any  time  when  there  is  a  surplus  they  may  be  sold 
at  fair  prices,  but  to  secure  the  best  prices  they  must  be  young  and 
in  a  good  marketable  condition,  not  too  fat  and  not  too  large. 

J.  F.  Crangle  says  a  pasture  is  a  good  place  for  poults.  Free 
range  gives  the  best  turkeys.  Teach  them  to  come  home  to  feed  at 
a  particular  place.  He  says  they  never  lose  over  ten  per  cent,  of 
the  poults,  these  mostly  by  foxes  and  hawks.  He  believes  that  more 
money  can  be  made  in  turkeys  than  in  any  other  branch  of  poultry 
for  farmers. 

"I  do  not  wonder  that  there  are  so  many  failures  made  in  pre- 
paring turkeys  for  market  when  we  take  into  consideration  the 
course  so  many  breeders  take  in  fattening  their  birds,"  says  George 
Wolf,  in  Farm-Poultry.  "I  have  frequently  seen  flocks  of  turkeys 
penned  up  in  a  building  for  the  purpose  of  fattening  for  market,  and 
it  was  a  failure  every  time.  This  is  no  more  than  should  be  expected, 
for  turkeys  are  of  a  wild  nature,  and  as  soon  as  they  are  cooped  they 
begin  quarreling,  chasing  one  another  about  and  constantly  worry- 
ing for  freedom.  They  soon  tire  of  their  food,  grow  thin  and  will, 
when  killing  time  comes,  weigh  less  then  when  first  cooped  with  the 
expectation  of  fattening  them." 

"If  I  had  a  healthy,  vigorous  lot  of  turkeys  that  I  wanted  to 
prepare  for  market,"  says  George  Wolf,  in  Farm-Poultry,  "I  would 
give  them  absolute  freedom  and  all  the  clean  water  they  would 
drink.  The  fattening  process  would  continue  through  weeks  and  at 
no  time  would  I  give  them  quite  all  they  would  eat,  for  as  sure  as 
you  overfeed  you  will  begin  to  notice  sick  birds  in  the  flock.  I 
would  feed  corn  of  last  season's  crop,  and  mash  should  be  cold,  fed 
in  a  long  trough  that  is  kept  perfectly  clean,  and  grit  of  some  kind 
should  be  placed  where  they  could  always  get  it.  My  object  in  mak- 
ing them  pick  the  corn  from  the  cob  is  to  give  them  exercise  and 
because  they  will  not  roam  as  far  from  home  if  kept  busy  for  an 
hour  or  so  picking  corn." 

George  M.  Tucker,  in  Farm  and  Home,  says  he  has  found  that 
turkeys  raised  from  the  same  cock  and  hens  will  after  a  few  years, 
be  liable  to  crooked  breasts  and  other  deformities. 

Indigestion  destroys  many  young. 


Ii8  Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Too  many  young  turkeys  are  overfed. 

It  is  easier  to  overfeed  than  underfeed. 

Scarcely  enough  attention  is  paid  to  providing  grit  for  young 
turkeys  to  keep  them  in  the  best  of  health. 

Have  regular  meals,  and  an  hour  after  feeding  remove  all  food 
uneaten. 

Mrs.  G.  H.  Watson,  in  Iowa  Homestead,  says :  If  a  turkey  is  fed 
all  the  shelled  corn  he  can  possibly  stuff  himself  with,  he  gets  lazy 
and  quarrelsome,  crushing  and  tearing  the  life  out  of  everything 
smaller  and  weaker  than  himself,  that  is  not  active  enough  to  keep 
out  of  his  way.  Even  the  mother  hen  will  kill  the  nearly  grown 
youngster  that  she  has  fought  so  hard  to  protect  and  rear,  if  it  goes 
sick  or  crippled. 

The  fact  that  turkeys  are  difficult  to  raise  makes  it  all  the  more 
desirable  that  when  brought  to  maturity  they  should  be  of  the  best, 
says  the  Gentleman  Farmer.  This  can  be  assured  by  breeding  and 
feeding,  but  never  by  the  hit-and-miss  methods  in  vogue  by  the 
ordinary  breeder.  Breed  from  the  roundest  birds ;  do  not  expect  to 
get  good  market  stock  from  long,  lean  progenitors.  Gradually  get 
your  flock  into  square,  merchantable  shape,  on  which  every  ounce  of 
fat  will  show  to  advantage,  and  make  good  eating. 

Maryland  and  Philadelphia  dry-picked  turkeys,  says  the  New 
York  Produce  Review,  command  the  highest  market  prices,  not 
only  for  the  reason  that  the  turkeys  are  fat  and  usually  of  a  fine 
grade,  but  that  they  are  well  bled  in  killing,  which  naturally  gives 
the  skin  a  bleached  white  appearance. 

E.  P.  Cloud,  the  editor  of  Poultry  News,  is  an  experienced 
turkey  raiser.  His  method  of  fattening  for  market  is  as  follows  :  "Do 
not  confine  the  flock,  to  be  fattened,  in  small  pens ;  remember  the 
nature  of  the  birds  require  liberty;  rather  confine  those  which  you 
wish  to  keep  over.  Turkeys  having  full  liberty  will  devour  much 
food  and  take  on  fat  rapidly.  Fattening  turkeys  will  not  wandef 
so  much,  as  after  being  put  on  full  feed  they  will  be  more  content  to 
remain  nearer  home.  Give  the  fattening  turkeys  all  they  can  eat 
four  times  a  day,  from  the  time  when  you  commence  full  feeding 
until  twenty-four  hours  before  slaughtering  time.  The  first  three 
of  the  daily  meals  should  be  of  cooked  potatoes  and  cornmeal,  or 
of  cornmeal  scalded  with  milk  or  water,  and  the  last  of  whole  corn 
varied  with  wheat  or  buckwheat.  Always  use  corn  a  year  old ;  new 
corn  causes  much  trouble  and  may  kill  them.  Give  the  first  meal 
as  soon  as  possible  after  daylight,  and  the  last  just  before  dark.  Feed 
each  time  all  they  will  eat  up  clean,  but  leave  no  food  for  them.  Feed 
the  pounded  charcoal  occasionally,  and  keep  a  supply  of  gravel 
where  they  can  help  themselves." 

Coop  for  young  turkeys  should  have  board  floors. 

A  good  sign  is  to  see  the  young  turkeys  catching  flies. 

Grass  and  insects  compose  the  natural  diet  of  turkeys. 

A  writer  in  Poultry  Farmer  gives  these  valuable  suggestions : 
Rearing  turkeys  requires  a  certain  management  and  method  of 
feeding.    Very  much  depends  on  the  feed  for  the  first  two  months, 


Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  119 

Unless  they  are  at  least  a  week  old  young  turks  should  be  kept  away 
from  all  other  poultry  save  their  mother,  since  they  are  prone  to  fol- 
low anything  that  is  moving.  The  first  feed  should  consist  of  stale 
bread  soaked  in  milk,  with  chopped  onions  and  milk  curd,  to  which 
should  be  added  a  little  black  pepper  three  times  a  week.  Hard 
boiled  eggs  may  be  given,  but  there  is  a  proneness  to  give  too  much 
of  this  food.  A  poult  is  easily  killed  and  a  few  lice  on  it  will  mean 
its  death. 

Young  turkeys  require  feed  oftener  than  young  chicks.  The 
breeding  stock  should  not  be  related  in  the  least.  Raw  corn  meal  is 
not  beneficial  to  turkeys.  When  they  are  old  enough  to  eat  corn 
they  may  eat  almost  any  other  feed  that  is  at  hand.  A  little  fresh 
meat  chopped  and  fed  to  them,  will  be  a  benefit  and  will  also  be  very 
much  relished.  Keep  roosting  coops  clean  and  dry.  Should  a 
mother  hen  refuse  t»  go  in  a  coop  it  is  because  it  is  full  of  lice  or  is 
filthy,  her  instinct  telling  her  that  it  is  not  a  proper  place  for  her 
brood.  Keep  all  drinking  fountains  clean  and  sweet.  For  the  first 
few  weeks  the  poults  should  not  be  exposed  to  rain  or  dew.  Provide 
plenty  of  sharp  sand  or  gravel  for  them.  Give  them  a  good  dust 
bath,  composed  of  sifted  coal  ashes.  It  will  cause  lice  to  hunt  other 
quarters  very  soon.  One  very  important  point  will  be  to  look  twice 
a  week  for  large  lice  on  their  heads.  Two  or  three  healthy  insects 
of  this  order  will  soon  cause  the  death  of  a  poult.  Turkeys  are 
fond  of  grass  seed  and  insects,  and  will  seek  such  foods  if  they  do 
not  have  them.  Turkeys  do  not  take  kindly  to  close  confinement, 
and  the  young  take  great  delight  in  warm  weather,  it  can  scarcely 
get  too  warm  for  them  and  for  this  reason  the  earliest  broods  do  not 
do  the  best.  Warm  weather  and  long  rambles  through  the  fields  are 
necessary  privileges  of  the  turkey.  They  will  be  noticed  to  move 
slowly  scanning  every  nook  and  corner  for  some  morsel  to  pick  up, 
even  in  the  heat  of  the  day.  To  be  profitable  they  should  make 
rapid  growth,  and  to  do  this  they  should  have  plenty  of  good  food 
and  should  be  kept  warm  and  dry. 


In  an  excellent  article  on  the  turkey,  the  Feather  gives  the  fol- 
lowing practical  advice : 

Marketing. 

After  the  turkeys  are  grown  and  ready  for  market,  quite  as 
much  care  and  attention  should  be  given  to  the  killing  and  shipping 
as  to  the  proper  growing.  Where  these  things  can  not  be  done  to 
good  advantage,  it  is  better  to  sell  them  alive.  Buyers  who  are  pre- 
pared to  kill,  dress,  pack,  and  ship  turkeys,  and  to  save  the  feathers, 
should  be  in  position  to  pay  what  they  are  worth  alive ;  and  should 
be  able  to  handle  them  at  a  profit,  better  than  can  the  grower,  who 
may  not  be  prepared  to  do  the  work  to  advantage.  So  much  de- 
pends upon  marketing  them  in  the  best  condition  that  small  growers 
should  either  dress  and  sell  to  thfcir  home  market  or,  providing  it 
can  be  done  at  a  fair  price,  sell  alive  to  someone  who  makes  a  busi- 
ness of  handling  such  stock. 


120  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Killing. 

Kill  nothing  but  well-fattened  stock.  It  seldoms  pays  to  send 
ill-favored  stock  into  market.  Do  not  give  any  food  to  the  turkeys 
for  twenty-four  hours  prior  to  killing.  This  allows  the  crop  and  en- 
trails to  become  empty  and  avoids  much  of  the  danger  of  spoiling. 
Full  crops  and  entrails  count  against  value ;  they  often  taint  the 
meat  and  prevent  its  being  kept  for  any  length  of  time. 

There  are  two  methods  of  killing  largely  used.  The  most  popu- 
lar is  to  suspend  the  fowl  by  the  shanks  head  down,  and  cut  or  stick 
it  in  the  roof  of  the  mouth  with  a  knife  made  especially  for  this  pur- 
pose. This  severes  the  arteries  and  cuts  into  the  brain,  causing  insen- 
sibility and  a  free  flow  of  blood  from  the  mouth.  This  is  called 
sticking  in  the  roof  of  the  mouth. 

The  other  plan  is  to  break  the  neck  by  a  quick  twist  or  jerk 
backward.  When  the  neck  is  completely  disjointed  the  head  is 
pulled  away  so  as  to  form  an  open  space  in  the  neck  in  which  the 
blood  may  settle.  This  plan  has  been  but  little  used,  though  the 
claim  is  made  that  when  so  killed  the  fowls  will  keep  longer,  be- 
cause there  is  no  opening  by  which  the  air  can  get  into  the  body, 
as  there  is  when  they  are  stuck  in  the  roof  of  the  mouth.  This 
method  has  been  more  used  for  chickens  than  for  turkeys,  and  to 
use  it  well  requires  considerable  practice. 

The  method  of  beheading  with  an  ax  or  hatchet  has  been  em- 
ployed for  ages. 

Dressing. 

Dry-picking  is  always  to  be  preferred  when  preparing  the  fowls 
for  market.  When  in  fine  condition,  nicely  picked,  and  sent  to 
market  without  having  been  packed  in  ice,  a  turkey  is  at  its  best, 
and  consequently  commands  the  highest  price.  As  soon  as  the  fowl 
is  stuck  and  the  blood  is  still  flowing,  pluck  the  feathers  dry  from 
its  body,  taking  care  in  doing  this  not  to  break  the  skin  or  tear  the 
flesh.  Nothing  detracts  so  much  from  dressed  poultry  as  torn 
places  upon  the  carcass  or  shank;  picking  must  be  clean  and  nicely 
done.  When  the  fowl  is  plucked  hang  it  head  down  in  a  cool  place 
until  all  animal  heat  is  gone  from  the  body,  being  careful  not  to 
hang  it  where  it  will  be  so  exposed  to  cold  air  as  to  be  likely  to 
freeze.  Do  not  remove  the  head,  feet,  or  entrails,  but  have  the  whole 
carcass,  including  head  and  feet,  perfectly  clean. 

The  method  known  as  scalding  and  plucking  is  too  familiar  to 
need  comment  further  than  to  say  that  care  must  be  taken  not  to 
scald  or  tear  the  skin  or  shank.  Perform  this  operation  as  neatly 
as  possible.  As  soon  as  the  animal  heat  has  left  the  body,  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  dressed  turkeys  may  be  improved  by  submerging  for 
a  short  time  in  cold  water,  as  this  has  a  tendency  to  make  them 
plump  whether  dry  picked  or  scalded.  The  plucking  should  be  dpne 
as  quickly  as  possible ;  the  more  quickly  done,  the  more  readily  can 
the  feathers  be  removed. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  121 

Packing. 

For  shipping,  pack  as  closely  as  possible  into  close  boxes  or 
barrels,  nicely  lined  with  white  or  manila  paper;  do  not  use  brown, 
soiled,  or  printed  paper.  Have  the  package  completely  filled  so  as 
to  prevent  the  poultry  from  shifting  about  in  transit ;  do  not  use  hay 
or  straw  for  packing,  as  it  marks  or  stains  the  fowls  and  detracts 
from  their  value.  The  above  method  can  only  be  used  when  the 
poultry  is  sent  to  market  without  being  packed  in  ice,  and  when  this 
can  be  done  with  safety,  either  in  refrigerator  cars  or  for  a  short 
distance  in  cold  weather,  it  is  by  far  the  best.  The  greater  part, 
however,  must  be  packed  in  ice.  When  necessaryto  do  this,  use 
nice  clean  barrels.  Cover  the  bottom  with  broken  ice ;  then  put  in 
a  layer  of  poultry,  then  a  layer  of  ice ;  continue  thus  till  the  barrel 
is  packed  solid  and  full.  Head  the  barrel  tightly  and  mark  its  con- 
tents plainly  on  the  head,  and  never  ship  mixed  lots  of  poultry  in 
the  same  package  if  it  can  be  avoided. 


!22  Money   in   Broilers   and    Squabs. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

General   Information   About   Geese — Breeding   Season — Goslings: 
Care  and  Feeding — Fattening — Killing  and  Picking. 

Green  goose  culture  is  a  profitable  industry,  but  not  very  ex- 
tensively carried  on  compared  to  that  of  green  ducks.  Where  suffi- 
cient space  can  be  provided,  it  is  a  valuable  adjunct  to  the  poultry 
business. 

Following  are  extracts  taken  from  the  writings  of  some  of  the 
best  authorities,  and  in  this  we  are  under  especial  obligations  to  the 
Rhode  Island  Experiment  Station,  which  made  special  trials  and 
tests. 

A  goose  was  exhibited  at  the  New  Jersey  State  fair,  1859,  and 
her  history,  on  a  placard  posted  on  the  coop,  read  as  follows : 
"Madam  Goose  is  now  owned  by  Robert  Schomp,  of  Reading,  Hun- 
terdon County,  N.  J.  She  has  been  in  his  possession  25  years,  and 
was  given  to  him  by  his  grandfather,  Major  H.  G.  Schomp.  Robert's 
father  is  now  in  his  85th  year,  and  this  goose  was  a  gift  to  his 
mother  as  a  part  of  her  marriage  outfit.  The  mate  of  Madam 
Goose  was  killed  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  being  rode  over  by  a 
troop  of  cavalry.  In  the  spring  of  1857  she  laid  6  eggs,  three  of 
which  were  hatched  and  the  goslings  raised.  In  1858  she  made  7 
nests  and  laid  but  2  eggs,  evidence  perhaps  of  failing  faculties.  Her 
eyes  are  becoming  dim,  one  having  almost  entirely  failed.  The  year 
of  her  birth  cannot  be  known,  but  she  remains  a  respresentative  of 
the  olden  time." 

William  Rankin,  about  25  years  ago,  purchased  in  Rhode  Island 
a  wild  gander  which  had  been  owned  by  one  family  some  50  years. 
A  member  of  the  family  had  wounded  the  gander  by  firing  into  a 
^  flock  of  wild  geese,  breaking  his  wing.  The  gander  recovered  from 
his  injury  and  was  kept  for  that  number  of  years,  without,  however, 
mating  with  other  geese.  He  is  now  kept  and  used  as  a  decoy  bird 
during  the  gunning  season,  and  highly  valued  by  his  owner,  al- 
though at  least  75  years  old. 

According  to  the  Greensburg  (Pa.)  Tribune,  at  West  Brown- 
ville,  Mrs.  Kate  Krepps  owned  a  goose  that  recently  died  at  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  forty-two  years.  This  was  the  last  of  a  flock  of 
geese  which  was  owned  years  ago  by  Aunt  Betsy  Hopkins,  mother 
01  Mrs.  Krepps,  and  it  is  said  they  supplied  the  feathers  for  all  the 
beds  and  pillows  in  the  old  Hopkins  house. 

An  instance  is  recorded  where  a  Canada  gander  45  years  old 
was  still  serviceable,  and  in  one  season  his  progeny  sold  for  the  sum 
of  $75- 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  123 

Geese  live  to  a  great  age,  and  females  are  reliable  and  produc- 
tive breeders  for  many  years,  but  ganders  of  the  domestic  varieties 
are  usually  unreliable  after  7  to  9  years.  Canada  ganders  can  be 
profitably  kept  for  25  or  more  years. 

Wm.  Rankin,  a  veteran  goose  breeder,  cites  the  instance  of  a 
goose  owned  in  Boxford,  Mass.,  where  it  was  the  property  of  one 
family  for  101  years,  and  was  then  killed  by  the  kick  of  a  horse. 
She  had  laid  15  eggs  and  was  sitting  on  them  when  a  horse 
approached  too  near  the  nest ;  she  rushed  off,  in  defence  of  her  eggs, 
seized  the  horse  by  the  tail,  and  was  killed  by  a  kick  from  the 
animal. 

Geese  have  a  long  tenure  of  life,  far  exceeding  any  other  domes- 
tic animal  in  this  respect.  In  former  times  it  was  not  uncommon  for 
the  farmer's  daughter,  on  her  wedding  day,  to  receive,  among  other 
gifts,  a  goose  from  the  old  homestead,  to  become  her  property  and 
accompany  her  to  her  new  home.  In  some  instances  such  geese  were 
kept  for  many  years,  perhaps  far  beyond  the  life  of  the  young  lady 
to  whom  it  was  presented. 

The  Hebrews  of  our  large  cities  are  the  best  customers. 

The  Hebrews  use  goose  oil  instead  of  lard. 

The  Philadelphia  Times  tells  of  a  goose  fattening  establishment 
kept  by  Sol  Renaker,  Cynthiana,  Ky.,  where  20,000  geese  are  an- 
nually fattened  for  sale  to  the  New  York  Hebrew  people. 

Eating  goose  at  Michaelmas  was  a  very  early  custom  in  Eng- 
land for  as  far  back  as  the  10th  year  of  the  reign  of  Edward  IV. 
(1471,)  John  de  la  Haye  was  bound  to  render  to  William  Barnaby, 
Lord  of  Lastress,  in  the  country  of  Hereford,  for  a  part  of  the 
demesne  land,  one  goose  fit  for  the  Lord's  dinner  on  the  feast  of  St. 
Michael,  the  Archangel,  says  English  Poultry. 

Hungarians,  Poles,  Hollanders,  Bavarians,  Germans,  Bohe- 
mians, etc.,  are  especially  fond  of  goose  flesh,  and  prefer  it  to  other 
kinds  of  meat  for  Christmas  and  holiday  feasts. 

The  demand  for  geese  is  not  constant,  although  there  is  a  limited 
demand  the  year  around  ;  the  greatest  numbers  are  called  for  during 
the  winter;  especially  at  the  holiday  seasons.  But  to  bring  good 
prices  they  must  be  young,  fat,  well-dressed,  and  put  up  in  attrac- 
tive shape. 

Large  quantities  of  geese  in  the  New  York  markets  come  from 
eastern  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island ;  a  great  many  come,  also, 
from  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland,  and  perhaps  from  farther  away. 
Great  quantities  of  live  geese  are  received  from  the  west. 

The  American  Agriculturist  says :  At  Adamsville,  R.  I.,  there 
is  a  large  goose-fattening  establishment.  The  proprietors  pick  up 
the  geese  in  carts  when  about  half  grown,  that  is,  about  the  age  that 
the  quills  begin  to  start ;  many  farmers  prefer  to  dispose  of  the 
geese  in  this  way  rather  than  have  the  trouble  of  fattening  them 
themselves.  The  professional  fatteners  finish  off  the  geese  in  4  to  6 
weeks.  There  is  nothing  secret  about  the  method  of  fattening.  Thev 
are  given  mostly  cornmeal,  bran  and  meat,  and  fed  all  they  will  eat. 
At  killing  time  5  or  6  pickers  are  employed,  and  these  become  very 


124  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

expert,  dressing  off  from  20  to  25  a  day.  The  product  is  shipped  to 
New  York  and  Boston ;  sometimes  the  demand  is  better  in  one  city 
and  sometimes  in  the  other.  The  poultry  are  dry  picked,  and  feath- 
ers sold  being-  kept  until  winter  and  shipped  all  together.  Goose 
feathers  are  usually  worth  about  35  cents  per  pound.  Mr.  Cornell, 
Dwner  of  this  establishment,  said  that  last  year  he  fatted  about  10,- 
doo  geese  and  about  4,000  ducks,  not  so  many  as  usual,  as  it  was 
a  poor  season.  He  feeds  100  bushels  meal  per  day,  and  two  tons 
meat  scraps  per  week.  He  does  not  coop  them  in  nouses  to  fatten, 
but  lets  them  out  in  yards  about  30  to  40  feet  square.  He  employs 
8  pickers  and  3  or  4  men  to  take  care  of  the  geese.  He  pays  10  cents 
for  picking. 

Green  geese  are  also  called  Boston  geese,  says  Rural  New- 
Yorker,  not  because  they  all  come  from  that  city,  but  because  they 
resemble  in  style  of  carcass  and  dressing  the  geese  from  that  local- 
ity, that  established  a  reputation  years  ago. 

The  Boston  geese  are  usually  dressed  with  the  tail  and  wing 
feathers  left  on,  and  a  ruff  around  the  neck. 

An  abdominal  pouch  of  great  size  indicates  great  age.  This 
sign  is  useful  in  purchasing  breeding  birds. 

P.  H.  Wilbur  gives  the  average  product  per  goose  for  8  years, 
on  his  farm,  at  $7.48. 

The  Canada  goose,  mated  with  the  domestic  goose,  produces 
goslings  commonly  called  mongrels,  and  sometimes  termed  "mules," 
because  of  the  fact  that  they  are  sterile. 

It  is  occasionally  true  that  a  mongrel  goose  when  kept  for  two 
or  more  years  will  lay  a  few  eggs,  but  we  have  no  knowledge  that 
goslings  have  ever  been  hatched  from  eggs  laid  by  a  mongrel  goose. 

Geese  only  one  year  old  are  not  mature  as  breeders.  The 
females  lay  a  less  number  of  eggs,  of  smaller  size,  and  a  greater  pro- 
portion is  usually  infertile  than  is  generally  the  case  with  females 
two  or  three  years  old. 

Ganders  and  geese  are  much  attached  to  their  mates  and  seldom 
prove  unfaithful.  Mismating  and  remating  are  often  unsuccessful 
unless  old  mates  are  separated  beyond  sight  and  hearing  of  each 
other. 

Under  natural  conditions,  geese  copulate  while  in  water,  and 
when  Canada  geese  are  kept  for  the  production  of  mongrels,  water 
for  swimming  purposes  is  considered  necessary,  in  order  that  fertile 
eggs  may  be  produced. 

According  to  the  Rhode  Island  census  for  1895,  each  breeding 
goose  (male  or  female)  produced  in  goslings  and  feathers  an  average 
return  of  $6.76,  which  represents  371.42  per  cent,  upon  the  value  of 
the  breeding  stock. 

Two  common  varieties  of  domestic  geese,  Embden  and  Toul- 
ouse, are  without  doubt  descended  from  the  wild  "Graylag  goose," 
(Anser  Ferus)  of  England  and  the  Continent.  Two  other  breeds, 
Brown  China  and  White  China,  are  derived  from  an  Asiatic  species 
known  as  the  Anser  cygnoides,  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  the  Afri- 
can goose  may  have  descended  from  the  same  original  type. 


Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  125 

The  date  of  the  domestication  of  the  goose  is  hidden  in  the 
•dimness  of  prehistoric  times.  Ancient  writings  reveal  the  goose  as 
one  of  man's  domestic  animals  valued  for  the  flesh  and  feathers  sup- 
plied by  it  for  his  food  and  comfort.  Since  the  fourth  century, 
quills  from  its  powerful  wings  have  furnished  instruments  for  writ- 
ings, valuable  and  indispensible,  until  in  modern  times  supplanted 
by  their  imitation,  the  steel  pen. 

Geese  have  a  strong  attachment  to  the  place  or  locality  con- 
stituting their  home,  and  removal  just  prior  to  or  during  the  breed- 
ing season  usually  has  a  very  injurious  effect  upon  the  egg  yield  and 
the  fertility  of  the  eggs. 

According  to  the  Rhode  Island  census  for  1885,  the  average 
product  per  sheep  in  wool  and  lambs  was  $2.51,  while  the  same  year 
the  average  product  per  goose  was  $2.72,  or  21  cents  more  for  each 
breeding  goose  kept  than  for  each  breeding  sheep. 

By  mating  Embden  ganders  with  African,  Toulouse  or 
Brown  China  geese,  hardy,  vigorous,  quick-growing  goslings  are 
■secured,  having  all  the  good  points  of  the  dark  breeds,  combined  in 
a  large  majority  of  cases  with  white  or  pied  plumage,  and  a  yellow 
bill ;  birds  which  dress  easily  and  command  the  highest  price  in  the 
•market. 

The  goose  is  naturally  a  grazing  animal.  The  bill  is  provided 
with  sharp,  interlocking,  serrated  edges,  designed  to  easily  cut  and 
•divide  vegetable  tissues,  and  the  tongue  at  the  tip  is  covered  with 
bard,  hair-like  projections  pointing  towards  the  throat,  which  serve 
to  quickly  and  surely  convey  the  bits  of  grass  and  leaves  into  the 
throat. 

Geese  are  naturally  timid,  watchful  and  easily  frightened,  but 
the  ganders,  during  the  breeding  season,  and  in  defence  of  their 
young  are  bold  and  courageous  to  a  remarkable  degree.  They  have 
many  peculiarities  which  the  breeder  who  would  be  successful  should 
•carefully  study.  They  should  be  gently  and  kindly  treated  at  all 
times. 

Picking  live  geese  is  now  seldom  practiced  by  goose  breeders 
in  Rhode  Island. 

Domestic  geese  in  general  are  polygamous  to  the  extent  of  mat- 
ing with  two  to  four  females. 

In  cold  climates  shelter  during  severe  weather  should  be  pro- 
vided, to  guard  against  frozen  feet. 

A  quiet,  docile  goose  does  better  than  a  shy  one. 

The  New  York  market  depends  more  or  less  upon  New  Eng- 
land for  her  supply  of  green  geese  in  the  Summer. 

A  gander  and  a  couple  of  geese  are  sufficient  to  start  with,  for 
their  eggs,  as  a  rule,  are  very  fertile,  and  they  are  excellent  sitters. 

Geese  will  come  nearer  living  on  pasturage  and  taking  care  of 
themselves  than  any  other  class  of  poultry. 

Goslings  come  in  for  the  table  as  "green  geese"  in  the  Summer, 
and  should  be  fine  birds  for  the  Michaelmas  board. 

Rhode  Island  breeders  have  the  reputation  of  producing  the 
largest  and  best  specimens  of  green  geese.    They  are  willing  to  take 


126  Money   in   Broilers   and    Squabs. 

tHe  necessary  pains,  and  perform  the  necessary  labor  to  give  their 
goslings  the  necessary  conditions ;  and  without  these  three  neces- 
sary things  it  is  vain  to  expect  success,  for  it  will  never  come. 
Geese  do  not  require  a  high  or  tight  fence. 
It  costs  about  $1.00  a  year  to  properly  keep  a  goose. 
Dora  Stephenson,  in  Wisconsin  Farmer,  says  one  reason  why 
geese  are  not  used  more  in  this  country  is  because  so  many  do  not 
know  how  to  dress  and  clean  them.  She  has  often  heard  the  remark 
that  a  goose  is  not  fit  to  eat,  but  a  young  goose  properly  cooked  is 
a  dish  fit  for  a  king.  To  clean  take  a  common  wash  boiler,  putting 
two  bricks  in  each  end,  and  pour  in  a  gallon  of  water.  Make  a 
frame  of  lath  to  fit  on  top  of  the  bricks,  then  when  the  center  is  boil- 
ing lay  your  goose  on  the  frame  and  put  on  the  lid  to  the  boiler. 
Steam  it  for  about  three  minutes,  or  till  the  feathers  come  out,  turn- 
,ng  the  goose  when  it  has  been  in  the  boiler  about  two  minutes.  The 
feathers  must  pull  easy  as  they  do  when  a  chicken  is  scalded.  ■  Now 
get  a  thin  sack  of  any  kind  and  pick  your  feathers  into  it  and  hang 
them  up  to  dry,  when  they  will  be  fit  to  use  the  same  as  dry  picked 
ones.  To  roast  prepare  the  same  as  any  other  fowl.  One  of  the 
patent  roasting  pans  is  best.  When  your  goose  has  been  roasting 
about  two  and  one-half  or  three  hours,  take  the  pan  out  and  skim  of 
all  the  fat  that  is  melted.  If  the  goose  is  yonng  it  should  be  tender 
m  four  hours.  The  goose  must  be  fat  to  be  good.  Miss  Stephenson 
says  she  steamed  over  a  hundred  last  Winter  and  sent  them  to  the 
Chicago  market,  saving  all  the  feathers. 

A  low,  marshy  field  with  a  little  upland  does  splendid  for  geese. 

There  is  no  chance  for  loss  in  goose  culture  if  properly  managed. 

Geese  for  Christmas  should  be  on  the  market  by  December 
20th. 

In  the  Eastern  markets  green  geese  generally  command  broiler 
prices. 

Goose  oil  has  served  as  a  panacea  for  rheumatism,  lumbago, 
stiff  joints,  sprains,  etc.,  from  time  immemorial. 

An  exchange  says  that  while  geese  are  a  water  fowl,  by  giving 
them  plenty  of  fresh  water  to  drink  and  keeping  them  away  from 
the  barnyard  and  stagnant  water  that  accumulates  there,  geese  can 
be  raised  with  equally  as  good  results  as  if  raised  on  the  banks  of  a 
stream. 

Among  our  most  valuable  breeds  of  geese,  the  Embden  is  one 
of  the  best,  says  Ohio  Poultry  Journal.  The  rivalry  between  it  and 
the  Toulouse  has  been  sharp  in  past  years,  but  the  Embden  seems 
the  choice  of  late  years,  owing  to  its  pure  white  plumage  and  ability 
to  put  on  flesh  rapidly. 

The  Embdens  excel  in  the  value  of  their  feather  crop. 

Never  pick  geese  when  they  will  be  exposed  to  cold  weather. 

It  will  require  about  four  geese  to  make  a  pound  of  feathers. 

The  time  to  pick  is  when  the  quill  of  the  feather  is  ripe  or  clear. 

Pick  the  geese  in  a  closed  room,  as  the  least  wind  will  seatter 
the  down  and  feathers. 


Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  127 

After  being  picked,  it  will  take  six  weeks  for  the  geese  to  grow 
and  ripen  a  new  crop  of  feathers. 

A  pair  of  Toulouse  geese,  says  the  Fanciers'  Review,  will  turn 
off  about  two  dollars  worth  of  feathers  in  a  year. 

While  the  feathers  are  developing,  the  quill  is  filled  with  bloody 
matter,  which  is  an  evidence  that  it  is  not  ripe. 

The  Fanciers'  Review  gives  this  method  for  picking  live  geese: 
Having  taken  up  your  bird,  draw  a  long  bag  or  stocking  over  its 
head  and  down  on  its  neck,  as  it  will  prevent  it  wreaking  its  ven- 
geance on  you  by  its  merciless  biting.  The  wings  are  also  formida- 
ble weapons  and  must  be  held  or  their  blows  will  leave  many  black 
and  blue  marks  as  evidence  of  their  power.  When  picking,  take  all 
the  small  feathers,  leaving  the  large  ones,  except  four  or  five  under 
each  wing,  which  prevents  them  from,  drooping;  take  off  all  the 
down  only  in  warm  weather. 

White  goose  feathers  are  more  valuable  than  colored  ones. 

Some  geese  raisers  pluck  their  birds  every  four  or  six  weeks. 

In  Strasburg,  a  place  celebrated  for  its  pies,  the  geese  have  a 
shepherd  to  tend  them  as  sheep  have. 

According  to  an  experiment  tried  in  Rhode  Island,  fall-sown 
rye,  spring  sown  oats  and  peas,  and  sweet  corn,  will  furnish  pasture 
sufficient  for  two  hundred  geese  per  acre. 

Matthieu,  the  cook  of  Cardinal  de  Rohan,  was  the  first  who  sug- 
gested the  use  of  the  liver  of  the  goose  for  pies. 

In  Europe  the  liver  of  the  goose  is  much  esteemed,  which  is 
sold  to  pie  makers  who  make  of  it  the  well  known  pies. 

Goose  livers  in  Europe  command  as  high  as  $4  per  dozen. 

Newman  thinks  there  is  money  in  raising  goose  livers  for  the 
New  York  markets. 

Hanover  Ganze  Biuste  (Hanover  smoked  geese  breasts)  sell  in 
Europe  in  the  finest  delicatessan  stores  at  80  cents  to  $1  a  pound. 

Vegetables  and  cut  clover  hay  should  be  in  the  bill  of  fare. 

Geese  are  profitable  layers  up  until  12  years  of  age. 

Feeding  too  much  corn  in  winter  unfits  the  birds  for  breeding. 

Too  much  grain  induces  too  early  laying,  causing  infertility  of 
eggs. 

The  gander  don't  have  a  curled  feather  in  the  tail,  as  does  the 
drake. 

The  first  green  goose  in  the  New  York  and  Boston  markets 
bring  from  18  to  25  cents  a  pound. 

Mr.  Newman  says  it  is  a  wrong  belief  that  geese  or  their  drop- 
pings will  kill  grass  or  destroy  a  pasture.  If  you  have  a  large  flock 
of  geese  and  a  small  pasture,  they  will  clean  it  up.  That  is,  they 
will  eat  the  grass  as  fast  as  it  sprouts,  and  give  it  no  chance  to  grow, 
just  as  a  cow  on  a  city  lot  will  soon  have  only  bare  ground,  and  vou 
have  to  tie  her  out  in  the  road.  If  you  could  do  the  same  with 
geese,  you  would  find  the  grass  coming  again  and  growing  as  be- 
fore. 

Writing  in  the  Country  Gentleman,  Prof.  Samuel  Cushman 
tays:    It  is  useless  to  attempt  to  raise  geese  successfully  if  they  are 


128  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

afraid  of  the  attendant.  They  should  be  treated  with  kindness  and 
have  full  confidence  in  their  keeper.  A  nervous,  quick  tempered, 
excitable,  rough  person  may  keep  them  so  disturbed  that  they  can- 
not thrive. 

Chas.  F.  Newman,  in  Reliable  Poultry  Journal,  say  the  Tou- 
louse goose  is  the  most  profitable  goose  to  raise.  It  grows  the  larg- 
est, matures  the  quickest,  is  not  so  much  a  rambler  and  flyer  as 
other  kinds,  and  as  it  does  not  take  so  readily  to  water  as  other  varie- 
ties, it  grows  more  rapidly,  and  accumulates  fat  faster.  Neither 
are  they  so  noisy. 

When  six  or  seven  months  old,  or  at  maturity,  says  Mr.  New- 
man, you  can  usually,  by  observation,  tell  the  ganders  from  the 
geese.  The  male,  in  most  cases,  grows  some  larger  than  the  female. 
The  goose  is  deeper  in  the  body,  a  trifle  slimmer  in  neck,  and  smaller 
in  head.  The  call  of  the  gander  is  loud,  long  and  shrill,  while  that 
of  the  goose  is  merely  an  answer  to  it. 

Ten  geese  will  consume  as  much  grass  as  a  cow. 

Geese  seek  mates  in  February. 

The  gander  is  a  gallant  protector. 

It  is  hard  to  glut  the  goose  market. 

Geese,  like  turkeys,  cannot  be  yarded. 

The  Jews  buy  only  live  geese. 

The  average  weight  of  goose  eggs  is  about  5  1-2  ounces  each. 

A  goose  is  said  to  be  the  cleanest  fowl  alive. 

A  goose  is  particular  about  the  condition  of  her  food. 

Geese  have  a  great  deal  more  sense  than  they  are  given  credit 
tor,  and  they  learn  to  know  their  attendants  and  seem  to  appreciate 
the  care  and  attention  they  receive. 

A  gosling  at  three  months  of  age  should  dress  10  to  12  lbs.,  de- 
pending on  the  season  of  the  year  hatched,  the  breed,  etc. 

The  Journal  of  Agriculture  says  inbreeding  is  the  greatest  evil 
to  be  guarded  against.  Unless  new  blood  is  introduced  into  the 
flock  once  in  every  five  years  at  least,  the  geese  are  sure  to  deteriorate 
to  a  serious  degree.  If  the  flock  is  well  kept  up,  however,  geese  can 
readily  be  produced  that  will  weigh  from  12  to  18  lbs.  a  piece, 
dressed. 

Howard  says  the  Toulouse  is  called  a  Christmas  goose,  as  it 
matures  just  about  right  for  the  holidays. 

The  Africans,  Toulouse  and  Brown  Chinas  have  black  pin 
feathers,  which  make  them  difficult  to  pick  when  dressed  as  green 
geese. 

In  cider  making  time  a  few  bushels  of  seedling  apples,  that  will 
keep  well,  should  be  laid  by  in  the  cellar  for  the  geese,  says,  Amer- 
ican Fancier.  It  is  worth  all  the  trouble  just  to  see  the  evident  en- 
joyment with  which  they  eat  them,  to  say  nothing  of  the  promotion 
of  their  thrift. 

Ordinarily,  not  over  two  or  three  per  cent  of  goslings  should 
die  after  the  second  or  third  day,  says  Prof.  Cushman.  "Most  ex- 
perienced goose  raisers  say  they  are  about  as  sure  to  raise  goslings 
as  colts,  accidents  excepted." 


Money   in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  129 

Goose  dung-  brings  a  high  price  as  a  fertilizer  in  China. 

Ganders  occasionally  take  very  peculiar  freaks,  such  as  con- 
ceiving a  violent  attachment  for  some  inanimate  object,  as  a  door, 
stone,  a  cart  wheel,  a  plow,  or  something  of  a  similar  nature,  when 
t»hey  will  spend  the  greater  part  of  their  time  sitting  beside  it  or  in 
its  company. 

While  the  young  gander  often  mates  with  3  or  4  females,  he 
usually  has  one  particular  favorite  among  the  number,  whose  nest 
he  guards  more  jealously  than  those  of  his  other  mates,  and  after 
some  years  he  is  liable  to  grow  so  inattentive  to  all  but  the  favorite 
that  many  of  the  eggs  produced  prove  to  be  infertile,  and  it  is  more 
economical  to  replace  him  with  a  younger  bird. 

Geese  are  less  liable  to  disease  than  any  other  domestic  fowl, 
which,  possibly,  may  count  in  some  measure  for  their  generally  long 
life. 

Toulouse  geese  usually  lay  more  eggs  in  a  season  than  Embden 
or  African  geese,  but  not  as  many  as  the  best  China  geese. 

There  is  a  curious  plan  to  determine  sex  adopted  in  Cam- 
bridgeshire. All  the  geese  are  shut  in  a  stable  or  a  pig  stye ;  a 
small  dog  is  then  put  in.  It  is  said,  and  we  believe  with  truth,  the 
geese  will  all  lift  up  their  heads  and  go  to  the  back  of  the  place, 
while  the  ganders  will  lower  and  stretch  out  their  necks,  hissing  all 
the  time. 

Morris  relates  a  number  of  instances  where  ganders  have  be- 
come the  inseperable  companions  of  their  masters,  following  them 
about  the  fields,  on  hunting  expeditions,  and  into  the  streets  of  a 
town,  like  the  most  devoted  dog.  He  also  narrates  how  faithfully 
a  gander  discharged  the  self  imposed  duty  of  guardian  and  guide 
to  an  old  blind  woman.  Whenever  she  went  to  church  he  directed 
her  footsteps  into  safe  paths  by  taking  hold  of  her  gown  with  his 
bill,  and  during  the  service  he  nipped  the  grass  in  the  cemetery  close 
by,  until  she  required  his  services  as  guide  to  return  home. 

Ganders  fight  among  themselves  whenever  one  colony  intrudes 
upon  the  territory  of  another,  and  their  battles  are  severely  fought, 
usually  with  the  wings,  one  gander  seizing  the  other  by  the  first 
joint  of  the  wing  with  the  bill,  and  beating  him  with  his  wings 
while  thus  held. 

Unlike  gallinaceous  fowls,  the  goose  has  practically  no  crop, 
although  an  enlargement  of  the  end  of  the  gullet  next  the  gizzard  in 
some  measure  serves  to  hold  food,  consequently  it  feeds  at  very 
frequent  intervals,  and  during  warm  weather  often  eats  more  at 
night  than  during  the  day  time,  a  point  which  should  be  remem- 
bered in  feeding  and  caring  for  them. 

If,  for  any  reason,  the  gander  is  separated  from  his  mates  and 
placed  with  others,  he  will  seldom  accept  them  so  long  as  his  old 
mates  are  anywhere  within  hearing  distance,  and,  even  when  they 
are  entirely  removed  from  the  premises,  it  frequntly  takes  some 
time  before  he  will  become  reconciled  to  his  new  mates. 

Geese  become  attached  to  the  locality  in  which  they  are  kept, 
and  are  much  disturbed  when  removed  to  a  new  location  ;  hence, 


12P  Money  in   Broilers   and   Squabs. 

when  such  removal  is  necessary,  or  when  a  beginning  is  to  be  made 
in  the  keeping  of  geese,  breeding  birds  should  be  placed  in  their  new 
quarters  some  weeks  before  the  laying  season  begins,  or  a  good 
number  of  fertile  eggs  will  probably  not  be  obtained. 

Old  geese,  changed  from  their  home  surroundings  to  a  new 
locality,  will  seldom  do  as  well  the  first  season  as  afterwards,  unless, 
perhaps,  the  change  has  been  made  in  the  summer,  after  the  close 
of  the  breeding  season. 

By  arranging  with  some  goose  breeder  at  the  early  part  of  the 
season — May  or  June — breeding  stock  can  be  selected  from  the 
number  raised  during  the  season,  and  in  that  way  better  birds  ob- 
tained than  later  in  the  season. 

If  the  young  geese  can  be  brought  to  their  new  home  in  the 
autumn  they  will  become  well  accustomed  to  their  surroundings 
and  feel  at  home  before  spring,  and  there  will  usually  be  no  difficul- 
ty in  mating. 

A  piece  of  low  swamp  ground  in  which  pond  holes  exist,  or 
may  be  artificially  made,  is  an  excellent  place  for  geese,  and  when 
a  piece  of  dry  upland  can  be  also  utilized  for  the  same  flock,  it  makes 
an  ideal  location. 

In  purchasing  geese  in  the  market,  the  Jews,  for  some  reason, 
always  look  for  a  bird  with  a  yellow  or  orange  bill,  and  a  large 
wholesale  poultry  breeder  states  that  it  is  almost  impossible  to  sell' 
a  Jew  a  black-billed  goose  so  long  as  he  can  find  one  having  a  light 
colored  bill. 

In  handling  a  goose,  it  should  always  be  taken  by  the  neck,  and 
when  lifted  from  the  ground  the  body  should  be  turned  with  the 
back  toward  the  person  handling  it.  In  that  position  it  cannot 
strike,  and  will  remain  quiet  and  docile.  The  body  can  be  partly 
supported  by  seizing  the  first  joint  of  the  wing  with  one  hand.  Ii 
the  goose  is  held  facing  one,  it  will  strike  hard  blows  with  its  wings 
or  scratch  with  its  feet. 

Breeding  Season. 

It  takes  30  days  to  hatch  the  goose  egg. 

A  goose  covers  her  eggs  with  the  nest  material. 

Geese  seldom  become  broody  the  first  year. 

A  goose  should  average  20  goslings  in  a  year. 

Geese  begin  laying  late  in  January,  or  early  in  February. 

Geese  cannot  be  profitably  hatched  and  reared  artificially. 

Some  breeders  wash  the  eggs  if  covered  with  mud,  while  others 
do  not. 

A  good  sized  hen  will  cover  five  eggs,  a  goose  from  9  to  13 
eggs. 

The  goose  will  lay  from  10  to  15  eggs  and  then  sit  diligently  on 
them  and  seldom  fails  to  bring  off  a  good  brood. 

A  writer  in  an  exchange  places  the  cost  from  hatching  to  time 
of  maturity,  at  from  50  cents  to  75  cents  per  head. 

Goslings  well  hatched  are  seldom  lost,  except  through  accident 
or  exposure  to  hard  storms  while  still  very  young. 


Money   in   Broilers   and    Squabs.  131 

Any  changes  in  the  mating  of  geese  should  be  made  in  the  fall, 
or  certainly  before  January,  if  the  best  results  are  expected. 

Two  or  three  litters  of  eggs  may  be  secured  by  "breaking  up" 
the  goose  by  shutting  her  in  a  pen  for  a  few  days  when  broody,  and 
setting  the  eggs  under  hens. 

A  writer  in  American  Stock  Keeper  says  that  after  the  28th 
day  of  incubation,  goose  eggs  should  be  put  in  milk  warm  water  a 
few  moments  each  day. 

The  shells  of  the  eggs  being  tough,  it  is  necessary  to  sprinkle 
them  every  now  and  then  during  the  hatch,  with  luke-warm  water. 

The  eggs  should  be  gathered  as  soon  after  they  are  laid  as  pos- 
sible, to  avoid  their  being  chilled. 

A  goose  is  usually  given  11  eggs  for  a  sitting,  although  a  very 
large  one  might  cover  thirteen. 

The  fertile  eggs  usually  hatch  at  the  end  of  28  or  30  days,  but 
a  longer  time  is  occasionally  required. 

When  each  goose  has  her  own  nest  she  can  easily  be  set  at  the 
end  of  the  second  or  third  litter  as  desired. 

After  the  eggs  have  been  incubated  for  about  7  to  10  days  they 
can  be  tested,  and  the  infertile  ones  taken  out. 

The  eggs  should  be  kept  in  a  moderately  warm  place,  not  too 
dry,  and  should  be  turned  over  every  day  until  set. 

Children  should  never  be  allowed  to  approach  geese  during 
incubation,  as  they  are  capable  of  inflicting  serious  injury. 

If  the  nests  of  the  geese  are  properly  provided  with  straw,  the 
eggs  will  never  be  sufficiently  soiled  to  require  washing. 

Five  to  seven  eggs,  according  to  the  size  of  the  hen,  are 
enough,  as  they  require  considerable  heat,  and  should  be  well 
covered. 

Hens  are  generally  used  to  hatch  the  first  eggs,  and  for  this 
purpose  quite  large  hens,  as  Brahmas  or  Cochins,  are  generally  pre- 
ferred. 

The  early-hatched  goslings  must  be  kept  from  severe  cold  at  first. 
As  they  come  out  they  should  be  brought  into  a  warm  room  and 
wrapped  in  flannel  until  all  are  hatched,  says  Farm  Journal.  The 
best  time  to  take  the  young  out  of  their  wraps  and  put  them  with 
the  hen  is  in  the  evening. 

"Great  laying  in  geese  is  not  to  my  mind  any  recommendation," 
says  an  old  breeder,  in  American  Stock-Keeper.  "I  prefer  a  goose 
that  will  lay  a  good  sitting — say  from  12  to  15  eggs — and  then  sit 
down  and  hatch  them  and  bring  off  her  flocks  to  the  fields  as  soon 
as  they  can  be  trusted  to  ramble  far  from  home." 

Whether  your  goose  eggs  are  set  under  hens  or  turkeys,  they 
should  be  sprinkled  during  the  incubating  period,  says,  Prof.  Cush- 
man,  in  Country  Gentleman.  In  this  section  it  is  done  twice  per 
week  after  the  fifteenth  day,  and  more  freely  just  before  the  twenty- 
eighth  day,  when  they  commence  to  hatch. 

The  broody  goose  plucks  off  more  or  less  down  from  her  breast 
with  which  to  line  the  nest  and  cover  the  eggs  whenever  she  leaves 
them. 


132  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

Usually  the  vitality  is  somewhat  affected  by  keeping  eggs  too 
long,  and  the  goslings  are  not  so  strong  and  active  as  when  hatched 
from  fresh-laid  eggs. 

A  basement,  or  a  fairly  close  building,  where  a  reasonably  mild 
and  uniform  temperature  can  be  maintained,  makes  an  excellent 
place  for  setting  hens  on  goose  eggs. 
(  The  shells  and  lining  membranes  of  goose  eggs  are  thicker  and 

tougher  than  those  of  hens'  eggs,  and  care  has  to  be  exercised  that 
they  do  not  become  too  dry. 

The  ganders  should  be  left  with  the  geese  during  incubation. 

It  is  well  to  place  food  and  water  near  th*.  nest  of  the  sitting 
goose  at  hatching  time,  so  that  she  will  be  less  likely  to  leave  the 
nest  before  all  the  goslings  are  hatched. 

Eggs  under  a  goose  seldom  need  attention,  as  more  or  less  mois- 
ture is  brought  to  the  nest  when  the  goose  bathes,  as  she  will  at 
intervals,  if  allowed  the  opportunity. 

Many  breeders  sprinkle  the  eggs  and  nest  during  the  last  two 
weeks  of  incubation,  and  still  others  dip  the  eggs  into  water  instead 
of  sprinkling  them.  Some  use  lukewarm  water,  others  use  cold 
water. 

It  is  better  that  one  person  should  care  for  the  geese  regularly, 
and  he  should  be  quiet  and  gentle  in  his  movements,  so  as  to  gain 
the  confidence  of  the  flock  and  make  them  as  tame  as  possible.  The 
advantage  of  this  will  be  evident  when  the  geese  wish  to  sit  during 
incubation,  and  while  the  goslings  are  small. 

After  the  goose  has  been  a  day  or  two  on  the  nest,  and  it  is 
desired  to  break  her  up  from  broodiness,  she  can  be  taken  off  and 
put  in  a  coop,  which  should  be  large  enough  so  that  she  can  stand 
erect.  If  she  is  confined  here,  at  a  little  distance  from  her  mates, 
she  will  usually  abandon  the  idea  of  sitting  after  5  or  7  days,  and 
when  released  will  shortly  begin  laying  again. 

Ganders,  during  the  breeding  season,  and  even  the  geese  when 
sitting,  or  in  defence  of  their  young,  manifest  considerable  courage 
and  often  punish  intruders  severely.  When  interfered  with  they 
seize  the  intruder  with  the  bill,  strike  with  the  wings,  and  some- 
times scratch  with  the  claws.  They  have  sufficient  power  in  the 
jaws  to  bite  quite  hard,  and  a  large,  full  grown  gander  has  been 
known  to  strike  hard  enough  with  the  wings  to  break  a  person's 
arm. 

In  setting  a  chicken-hen  with  goose  eggs,  Mr.  Newman  says, 
the  hen  will  set  all  right,  but  when  the  young  ones  break  the  shell, 
and  the  hen  sees  a  green  little  creature  with  a  long,  wide  bill  salut- 
ing her,  she  takes  it  for  a  freak  or  nature  and  off  comes  its  head ! 
Not  many  hens  will  claim  the  young  geese,  so  take  the  goslings 
away  as  they  hatch  and  try  the  hens,  giving  them  to  a  good  slow, 
gentle  mother.  As  soon  as  she  takes  them  without  any  fuss  there 
is  no  further  danger. 


Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs.  1 33 

Goslings :  Care  and  Feeding. 

Do  not  overfeed  the  young. 

Goslings  should  be  protected  from  storms  or  from  sudden 
showers. 

Northern  flint  corn,  finely  cracked,  is  preferred  by  some  feeders 
of  goslings. 

Wire  netting,  one  foot  wide  and  one  inch  mesh,  makes  a  good 
fence  for  goslings. 

After  four  or  five  weeks  old,  feeding  at  morning  and  at  night 
will  prove  sufficient. 

Care  should  be  taken  not  to  overcrowd,  as  the  young  are  liable 
to  injure  or  even  kill  one  another. 

Some  breeders  use  a  few  sweet  beef  scraps  in  the  food  when 
young  are  four  or  five  weeks  old. 

The  young  should  be  confined  at  night  where  they  are  safe  from 
the  attack  of  rats,  weasles  or  minks. 

Grass  is  the  natural  food  for  goslings,  and  where  the  supply  is 
abundant  less  grain  foci  is  required. 

If  hatched  before  the  grass  starts  in  the  spring,  the  care  of  the 
goslings  is  rather  a  difficult  matter. 

The  goose  will  take  excellent  care  of  her  young  brood,  and  need 
not  be  disturbed  until  time  to  feed  them. 

When  goslings  are  hatched  in  incubators,  they  can  be  readily 
cared  for  by  using  some  good  artificial  brooder. 

Sharp  sand,  saturated  with  water,  should  be  provided  in  a  shal- 
low dish  where  the  young  can  help  themselves  at  any  time. 

The  bottom  of  the  brooder  should  be  covered  with  fine  sand, 
which  should  be  changed  so  that  it  may  be  dry  and  clean. 

The  very  early  goslings  are  more  valuable  than  those  later 
hatched,  because  they  mature  earlier  and  are  the  first  to  be  ready 
for  market. 

As  soon  as  the  quill  feathers  have  developed  upon  their  backs, 
goslings  will  be  out  of  danger  from  injury  through  getting  wet  in 
showers  or  storms. 

At  the  end  of  two  or  three  weeks,  and  much  less  time  than  that 
after  June  1st,  the  brooder  can  be  dispensed  with  altogether,  in 
using  artificial  methods. 

In  extremely  hot  weather,  or  in  the  bright  sunshine,  goslings 
are  liable  to  become  sunstruck,  and  should  be  provided  with  shade 
from  the  heat  of  the  sun. 

Goslings  require  to  be  kept  indoors,  and  on  an  earth  floor,  if 
possible,  and  should  be  provided  with  some  kind  of  green  food,  as 
chopped  lettuce  or  cabbage. 

As  the  weather  becomes  warm,  the  goslings  can  be  allowed 
free  access  to  water,  in  which  they  can  swim  if  they  choose,  without 
danger  of  getting  chilled. 

While  small,  the  young  should  be  fed  4  or  5  times  a  day,  and 
when  10  days'  old  a  little  food  may  be  put  into  the  building  when 
they  are  shut  up  for  the  night. 

When  the  flight  feathers  of  the  wings  have  grown  sufficiently 


134  Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

to  reach  nearly  to  the  tail,  the  goslings  are  ready  to  sell  to  the  fat- 
tener  or  to  be  penned  up  for  fattening. 

When  goslings  are  with  a  hen  they  should  be  given  the  same 
opportunity  to  feed  upon  tender  grass,  which  promotes  their 
growth  more  rapidly  than  anything  else. 

It  is  best  to  give  a  fresh  supply  of  bedding  every  day,  as  it 
soon  becomes  soiled  and  wet,  and  young  goslings  are  liable  to  con- 
tract rheumatism  from  sleeping  upon  it. 

The  Western  Rural  says  that  eggs  fed  to  goslings  should  not 
be  boiled  too  hard ;  just  so  the  yolk  is  sticky. 

Mr.  Brabazon  says  if  you  want  to  teach  a  gosling  to  eat,  you 
must  do  so  by  throwing  the  food  in  water. 

At  10  weeks'  of  age,  or  when  the  tips  of  the  wings  reach  the 
tail,  young  geese  are  ready  for  market  and  should  weigh  between  8 
and  9  pounds. 

Goslings  make  the  greater  part  of  their  growth  upon  grasses 
or  fodder  plants,  and  can  thus  be  more  economically  produced  than 
poultry  which  requires  to  be  almost  exclusively  grain  fed. 

J.  R.  Brabazon,  of  Delavan,  Wis.,  says  goslings  will  not  eat  for 
the  first  three  or  four  days.  Then  he  gives  them  tender  young  let- 
tuce or  grass  sprinkled  in  water. 

A  New  Jersey  raiser  feeds  his  young  goslings  johnny  cake  the 
first  two  weeks.  After  that  he  feeds  scalded  shorts,  bran  and  corn 
meal,  to  which  is  added  a  liberal  amount  of  ground  beef  scraps. 

In  hatching  goslings  artificially,  the  first  day  or  two  the  in- 
cubator should  have  a  temperature  of  90  to  93,  which  may  soon  drop 
to  80  to  85,  according  to  the  weather  conditions. 

The  building  in  which  the  young  are  confined  should  be  pro- 
vided with  a  sufficient  supply  of  cut  straw  or  hay  to  cover  the  floor, 
and  this  should  be  frequently  changed. 

When  hatched  they  do  not  require  feeding  until  they  are  24  or 
36  hours  old.  Oats  may  be  sown  in  shallow  boxes  of  earth,  and 
their  tender  blades  make  a  good  substitute  for  grass. 

One  point  should  be  remembered — the  water  dish  should  never 
be  allowed  to  become  empty  for  any  length  of  time,  whether  while 
the  goslings  are  small  or  at  any  time  during  their  life. 

Goslings,  while  small,  are  covered  with  down,  which  seems  to 
have  little  power  to  shed  water,  and  soon  becomes  wet,  and  the 
goslings  become  chilled  and  soon  die,  unless  thoroughly  dried  and 
warmed. 

If  the  supply  of  grass  or  green  food  is  scanty,  the  goslings 
should  be  fed  more  frequently  and  a  larger  quantity,  as  goslings,  to 
be  profitable  must  be  kept  growing  from  the  time  they  are  hatched 
until  sold. 

If  the  weather  is  pleasant  the  young  should  be  given  every  op- 
portunity to  feed  upon  short,  tender  grass,  and,  if  kept  indoors  by 
severe  storms,  a  few  sods  or  bunches  of  short  grass  will  be  greedily 
accepted. 

As  a  rule,  goose  breeders  calculate  to  have  the  first  goslings 
hatched  about  the  time  the  grass  begins  to  grow  in  the  spring  and 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  135 

the  weather  becomes  sufficiently  mild  to  allow  the  young  goslings 
to  be  put  out  of  doors. 

Goslings  with  a  goose  may  be  confined  by  three  boards,  10x12 
feet  in  length,  and  a  foot  wide,  set  upon  edge,  making  a  triangular 
pen.  This  pen  can  be  moved  as  frequently  as  the  goslings  eat  up 
the  grass  and  require  a  new  pasture. 

A  good  feed  for  young  goslings  is  scalded,  finely  cracked  Indian 
corn,  with  a  little  sweet  Indian  meal  or  bran  mixed  with  it.  It 
should  not  be  wet  and  sticky,  but  just  enough  water  should  be  added 
±0  make  the  dough  have  a  crumbly  consistency. 

The  old  goose  will  seldom  cause  any  trouble  by  deserting  her 
goslings.  She  should  be  placed  a  little  distance  from  other  geese, 
and  especially  her  mates,  or  they  may  cause  trouble  by  jumping 
Into  the  pen  with  her,  to  the  great  danger  of  the  goslings. 

After  the  goslings  are  10  days'  old,  the  goose  and  her  flock 
can  be  allowed  to  roam  at  will  in  a  pasture  with  short  grass,  al- 
though it  is  better  that  the  goslings  do  not  have  an  opportunity  to 
swim,  as  they  are  liable  to  become  chilled  by  the  cold  water. 

Water  should  be  provided  the  young  gosling  in  a  shallow  dish, 
in  which  a  few  pebbles  or  bits  of  coal  have  been  placed,  or  some 
other  provision  made  to  prevent  the  young  goslings  from  getting 
into  the  water,  and  getting  the  soft  down,  with  which  they  are 
covered,  wet,  thereby  becoming  chilled. 

Some  hens  become  restless  on  the  nest,  and  are  liable  to  kill 
the  young  goslings  by  treading  upon  them.  In  such  cases  it  is  well 
to  give  the  goslings  to  a  more  quiet  hen,  or  perhaps  remove  them  to 
a  well-lined  basket  or  box  by  the  kitchen  fire,  where  they  can  remain 
during  the  day,  to  be  returned  to  the  hen  at  night. 

Goslings  occasionally  get  "cast."  That  is,  they  fall  upon  their 
backs  by  accident,  and  are  unable  to  get  up.  A  goose  at  such  a  time 
has  sufficient  instinct  to  turn  the  goslings  over  with  her  bill,  but 
the  hen  fails  to  comprehend  the  necessity  of  this,  and  it  is  always 
well  for  the  attendant  to  count  his  goslings  at  every  feeding  time, 
when,  if  one  is  missing,  it  may,  perhaps,  be  found  alive,  and  re- 
turned to  the  flock. 

It  will  sometimes  happen  that  you  will  hatch  and  raise  a  gosling 
with  a  broken  wing.  It  is  no  serious  fault  at  all,  only  a  misforma- 
tion  in  the  egg.  Mr.  Newman  says  if  it  is  a  nice,  large,  promising 
bird  do  not  kill  it,  nor  be  apprehensive  that  it  will  breed  broken 
winged  birds,  for  it  will  not.  if  the  looks  of  it  be  unpleasant  to  you, 
take  a  sharp  knife  and  sever  the  crooked  part  at  the  joint.  Bandage 
It  and  it  will  soon  heal,  and  you  will  never  note  the  difference  after- 
wards.    You  will  generally  find  such  to  be  the  largest  birds. 

Fattening. 

In  Europe  finely  ground  oats  or  barley  mixed  with  milk  is  used 
for  fattening. 

When  the  weather  is  warm,  goslings  eat  less,  and  consequently 
fatten  more  slowly. 

Geese  for  fattening  should  be  penned  upon  high,  gravelly  soil, 
or  land  that  will  not  become  muddy  in  wet  weather. 


136  Money    in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

In  fattening  goslings  during  the  warm  weather  of  summer,  pro- 
visions should  be  made  for  as  much  air  as  possible. 

A  pen  for  fattening  50  geese  should  be  40  feet  or  more  square, 
and  should  be  bare  of  green  crops  and  provided  with  shelter  from 
the  sun. 

Goslings,  while  being  fattened,  should  be  kept  as  quiet  as  pos- 
sible. They  should  not  be  disturbed  by  the  presence  of  strangers 
or  dogs. 

Decayed  stumps,  or  pieces  of  partially  rotted  wood,  are  greedily 
eaten  by  geese  when  fattening,  and  a  moderate  supply  seems  to  do 
them  good. 

White  flint  corn  or  white  cornmeal  is  prized  by  some  who  be- 
lieve that  it  produces  a  whiter  flesh  or  fat  which  gives  the  bird  a 
more  desirable  appearance. 

No  shelter  from  rain  is  required  in  the  fattening  pen  during 
the  summer  or  fall  weather,  and  geese  are  almost  never  fattened  for 
market  during  the  winter. 

It  is  better  to  have  two  pails,  each  half  full  of  water,  in  the  fat- 
tening pen  than  one  filled  to  the  top.  Goslings  can  then  only  get 
water  for  drinking  which  is  all  that  is  desired. 

A  quick  way  to  fatten  geese  is  to  put  a  few  in  a  darkened  pen 
and  feed  a  pound  of  oats  f>er  day  to  each  one.  They  fatten  in  two 
weeks. 

The  fattening  of  green  geese  should  begin  when  the  flight 
feathers  of  the  wing  have  grown  sufficiently  to  reach  the  tail. 

It  is  difficult  to  fatten  mongrels  properly  until  the  cool  weather 
of  Fall  when  they  fatten  readily,  about  the  same  course  being  pur- 
sued as  in  the  fattening  of  other  goslings. 

Goslings  hatched  in  July  and  kept  until  January  or  February, 
and  then  fattened  and  put  on  the  market,  will  be  classed  by  the 
dealers  as  old  geese,  and  bring  a  very  inferior  price. 

Several  hundreds  may  be  fattened  in  a  pen  together,  provided 
it  is  sufficiently  large  for  them,  and  that  proper  care  is  exercised  in 
distributing  the  food  and  water  so  that  all  can  share  alike. 

Geese  intended  for  market  are  usually  fattened  and  killed  not 
later  than  the  middle  of  November,  at  which  time  the  dealers  put 
large  quantities  in  cold  storage  for  the  winter  and  spring  trade. 

Care  should  be  taken  that  the  scalded  food  is  always  sweet, 
and  does  not  stand  long  enough  to  become  sour  and  unwholesome. 
It  should  be  scalded  just  long  enough  before  wanted  for  feeding  to 
become  entirely  cooled. 

One  large  dealer  writes  that  when  real  cold  weather  arrives 
the  flesh  and  muscles  of  both  sexes  rapidly  harden  and  become 
tough,  so  that,  when  kept  into  the  winter  and  then  killed,  they  do 
not  give  satisfaction  to  the  consumer. 

When  penned  for  fattening,  goslings  may  be  fed  for  one  or  two 
days  quite  moderately,  in  a  way  to  prepare  them  for  the  regular  fat- 
tening ration.  During  this  time  they  can  have  a  little  green  food, 
and  such  grain  food  as  they  have  been  accustomed  to. 

Since  the  almost  universal  use  of  cold  storage,  some  dealers  are 
having  even  their  mongrel  geese  for  the  Christmas  trade  fattened 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  137 

and  killed  at  Thanksgiving  and  kept  a  month  in  cold  storage,  in- 
stead of  having  them  killed  at  Christmas  as  was  formerly  their  cus- 
tom. 

Any  goslings  which  are  not  fat  when  taken  from  the  fattening 
pen  are  usually  allowed  to  run  outside  for  a  week  or  two,  where 
they  have  plenty  of  green  food  and  only  a  moderate  amount  of 
grain,  and  are  afterwards  put  in  the  fattening  process  a  second  time. 
The  cornmeal  and  the  beef  used  in  fattening  food  should  be  of 
the  very  best  quality,  and  mixed  in  the  proportion  of  one  part  of 
scraps  to  four  parts  of  meal,  by  measure,  and  a  little  salt  should  be 
added,  just  enough  to  season  it,  care  being  taken  not  to  use  too 
much. 

Some  fatteners,  about  two  hours  before  killing  the  birds,  allow 
them  to  eat  what  they  will  readily  consume  of  sweet,  fresh,  green 
food,  like  green  oats  or  sweet  corn.  They  claim  that  this  fills  the 
birds  up,  and  they  present  a  more  plump  appearance  and  sell  better 
in  the  market. 

It  requires  usually  from  17  to  20  days'  steady  feeding  to  fatten 
goslings.  If  fed  much  longer  than  that  their  appetites  are  likely  to 
fail,  and  they  are  also  inclined  to  molt,  which  of  course  seriously 
interferes  with  fattening,  and  would  also  make  the  bird  hard  to 
pick  and  unsatisfactory  when  dressed. 

Some  kinds  of  geese  are  more  nervous  when  confined  in  the 
fattening  pens  than  others,  and  at  times  a  flock  will  get  in  the  habit 
of  running  from  side  to  side  of  the  pen,  or  "churning,"  as  the  fat- 
teners term  it,  when  the  least  unusual  thing  occurs.  Under  such 
circumstances  they  fatten  very  indifferently. 

Goslings  should  be  slaughtered  when  taken  from  the  fattening 
pen  or  soon  afterward.  They  should  never  be  shipped  or  carted 
away  from  the  place  alive.  If  this  is  done  and  they  are  then 
dressed,  the  fat  will  have  a  dark  appearance,  as  though  the  birds 
were  not  in  a  good,  healthy  condition,  and  they  will  hardly  be  sale- 
able. 

For  fattening,  feed  scalded  dough,  made  from  Indian  cornmeal 
and  sweet  beef  scraps.  Water  should  be  provided  in  pails  or 
buckets,  giving  them  a  fresh  supply  three  times  daily,  but  only 
sufficient  for  them  to  drink,  and  not  enough  for  them  to  attempt 
to  bathe,  as  water  spilled  around  the  pen  is  apt  to  make  the  ground 
muddy,  and  any  unnecessary  exercise  is  hindrance  to  fattening. 

Feed  in  the  morning  what  dough  the  goslings  will  not  eat  up 
in  an  hour  after  feeding.  At  noon  feed  whole  corn  in  the  same  way, 
but  at  night  a  considerable  larger  quantity  of  dough  can  be  given 
them,  as  they  will  eat  more  sometimes  during  the  night,  when  the 
weather  is  cooler,  than  during  the  whole  day.  A  little  powdered 
charcoal  should  be  mixed  with  the  dough  about  twice  a  week.  If  at 
any  time  more  dough  should  be  given  than  is  eaten  up,  remove  it 
from  the  pen  before  giving  them  a  fresh  supply. 

The  following  method  in  fattening  is  adopted  by  an  English 
goose  farmer:  Geese  in  good  condition  should  be  shut  up  in  a  quiet 
place,  shaded  from  the  light,  where  they  cannot  see  other  geese  at 
libertv.  and  should  be  kept  there  from  20  to  25  days.     It  is  beneficial 


138  Money   in   Broilers    and    Squabs. 

to  let  them  out  for  about  15  to  30  minutes  first  thing  in  the  morning 
and  again  in  the  evening  before  dusk.  The  meals  they  get  should 
be  nutritious,  and  a  mixture  of  barley-meal,  wheatmeal,  a  little 
cornmeal  and  boiled  potatoes  given  warm  twice  a  day  is  good. 
About  the  last  ten  or  twelve  days  it  is  advisable  to  mix  a  little  finely 
chopped  rough  fat  with  the  meal.  This  has  the  effect  of  plumping 
them  up,  rendering  their  flesh  much  more  palatable.  A  trough  of 
clean  water  should  be  supplied  to  the  birds  after  the  evening  meal. 

Killing  and  Picking. 

Green  goslings  are  never  drawn  for  market. 

In  picking  mongrel  geese,  the  tail  feathers  should  be  left  on  the 
bird. 

Professional  pickers  usually  receive  10  cents  each  for  picking 
green  geese. 

Young  geese  should  be  well  fed  the  night  before  they  are  to  be 
killed  for  market. 

Care  should  be  taken  not  to  tear  the  flesh,  as  the  skin  of  some 
goslings  is  very  tender. 

Some  fatteners  feed  freely  of  some  sweet  green  food,  like  oats 
or  sweet  corn,  about  2  or  3  hours  before  killing. 

Appearance  has  much  to  do  with  the  selling  value  of  geese,  as 
well  as  of  any  product  put  upon  the  market. 

The  feathers  from  45  green  geese,  dressed  August  29th,  weighed 
I2|  pounds  after  steaming  and  drying. 

Expert  pickers  can  dress  from  20  to  30  birds  in  a  day,  depend- 
ing, of  course,  upon  whether  they  are  hard  or  easy  to  pick. 

When  large  numbers  of  green  goslings  are  dressed,  the  feathers 
form  no  inconsiderable  part  of  the  income  from  fattening. 

Removing  the  pin  feathers  one  by  one  is,  of  course,  a  slow  pro- 
cess, but  it  has  to  be  done  that  the  birds  may  present  a  good  ap- 
pearance. 

In  picking,  only  the  salable  feathers  are  put  into  the  box,  the 
wing  and  tail  feathers  and  soft  pin  feathers  being  thrown  upon  the 
floor. 

Before  packing,  the  goslings  should  be  removed  from  the  bar- 
rels of  ice  water  and  laid  upon  boards  or  benches  to  allow  the  water 
to  drain  from  them. 

The  feathers  from  a  mature  gosling  will  weigh  about  one-fourth 
to  one-third  of  a  pound,  but  green  goslings,  if  quite  young,  do  not 
yield  as  many  feathers. 

The  room  to  be  used  for  dressing  geese  should  be  provided 
with  a  box  to  receive  the  feathers,  at  which  two  pickers  can  con- 
veniently sit,  one  on  each  side. 

For  killing,  a  stout  knife  with  a  double-edged  blade  about  4 
inches  long,  tapering  to  a  point  something  the  shape  of  a  dagger 
blade  is  commonly  used. 

A  common  shoe-knife  is  most  convenient  for  removing  pin 
feathers,  and  should  be  kept  very  sharp,  as  a  razor  edge  is  neces- 
sary to  do  quick  and  satisfactory  work. 

Birds  with  dark  feathers,  particularly  of  Brown  China,    and 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  139 

sometimes  of  African  blood,  pick  harder  and  tear  more  easily  than 
Embden  or  other  white-feathered  varieties. 

The  feathers  should  be  picked  from  the  lower  third  of  the  neck, 
leaving  about  two-thirds  of  the  length  of  the  neck  next  to  the  head 
unpicked.    The  wing  feathers  beyond  the  first  joint  are  also  left. 

The  wings  are  pressed  slightly  toward  the  back  in  tying,  and 
their  natural  elasticity  forces  the  breast  meat  and  fat  upwards  so 
that  the  bird  looks  plump,  if  well  dressed  and  the  cord  is  tight. 

Goslings  are  shipped  to  market  by  packing  in  boxes  or  barrels 
with  broken  ice.  The  quantity  of  ice  used  depends  upon  the  tem- 
perature of  weather  at  the  time  and  the  distance  to  which  they  have 
to  be  shipped. 

In  warm  weather,  when  green  goslings  are  usually  dressed, 
they  are  kept  in  barrels  of  ice  and  water  until  sent  to  market.  The 
birds  should  be  freshly  packed  in  ice  and  clean  water  as  soon  as  the 
bodily  heat  is  thoroughly  taken  out  of  them. 

Sugar  barrels  are  often  used  for  shipping.  One  or  two  holes 
should  be  bored  in  the  bottom  to  allow  surplus  water  to  drain  away. 
A  good  layer  of  ice  should  be  used  at  the  top  of  the  barrel,  which 
can  then  be  covered  with  two  or  three  thicknesses  of  burlap. 

Scalding  is  seldom  practiced  where  birds  are  to  be  shipped  and 
kept  for  some  time  before  being  sold ;  but  where  birds  are 
slaughtered  for  immediate  sale  in  a  nearby  market,  the  picking  is 
made  very  easy  by  scalding.    The  feathers,  however,  are  of  no  value. 

In  packing  the  head  of  the  gosling  is  placed  against  the  side  of 
the  bird,  which  is  then  packed  back  downward  on  a  layer  of  cracked 
ice  in  the  box  or  barrel.  After  enough  have  been  packed  to  make 
a  layer,  cracked  ice  is  put  in  and  another  layer  placed  upon  them 
until  the  package  is  full. 

The  shrinkage  in  dressing  goslings  is  comparatively  small,  as 
only  the  blood  and  feathers  are  lost.  It  occasionally  happens  that  a 
specimen  will  absorb  sufficient  ice  water  so  that  the  dressed  weight 
will  equal  the  live  weight  of  the  bird.  As  a  rule,  however,  the 
shrinkage  is  about  5  per  cent,  of  the  live  weight. 

Where  ducks  and  geese  are  sent  to  markets  requiring  them 
drawn,  they  may  be  scalded ;  then  wrap  them  in  a  cloth  for  two 
minutes,  when  the  feathers  and  down  will  come  off  clean. 

It  is  said  that  it  is  much  harder  to  dress  a  gosling  in  cold 
weather.  The  feathers  set  tighter,  and  in  picking  them  the  flesh  is 
torn. 

Farm  and  Home  says  those  intending  shipping  should  send  to 
■dealers  in  poultry  for  modes  of  preparing  for  market,  since  modes 
differ  in  different  sections. 

In  dressing  Canada  geese  for  market,  the  feathers  of  the  head, 
two-thirds  or  more  of  the  neck,  the  wings  and  tail  are  left  on  the 
bird,  and  serve  to  identify  and  guarantee  the  genuineness  of  its 
breeding. 

The  feathers  should  be  spread  in  some  clean,  dry,  airy  place  to 
cure.  If  placed  upon  the  floor  of  a  loft  they  should  be  turned  over 
with  a  fork  every  few  days  until  thoroughly  dried.  If  put  in  bags 
and  well  steamed  thev  are  more  valuable,  as  the  steam  in  a  measure 


140  Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs. 

purifies  them  and  removes  somewhat  of  the  oily  odor  which  they 
otherwise  have. 

When  many  pin  feathers  are  found  on  the  birds,  they  have  to 
be  removed  with  a  sharp  knife.  White  pin  feathers  can  be  shaved 
off,  as  the  part  remaining  in  the  skin  will  not  show,  but  black  pin 
feathers  must  be  removed  entirely.  The  operator  takes  the  skin 
of  the  bird  between  the  fingers  of  the  left  hand  and  makes  a  slight 
longtitudinal  cut  in  the  skin  on  the  side  of  the  pin  feather,  when  it 
can  be  easily  removed. 

As  soon  as  the  bird  is  picked  the  blood  is  rinsed  from  the  head 
and  mouth,  the  bird  is  placed  upon  its  back,  and  a  string  tied  tightly 
around  the  middle  of  the  body,  pressing  the  wings  firmly  against 
the  sides.  Fairly  stout,  white  cotton  twine  is  generally  used  for 
this  purpose,  but  mongrel  geese,  for  the  Christmas  trade  are  some- 
times tied  with  a  narrow  colored  tape,  or  braid,  which  adds  some- 
what to  the  appearance  of  birds  designed  for  a  fancy  trade. 

Some  fatteners  break  down  the  breast  bone  before  tying.  To 
do  this  the  bird  is  laid  on  its  back  on  a  solid  bench,  the  breast  is 
covered  with  several  thicknesses  of  damp  cloth,  and  two  or  three 
blows  on  the  breast-bone  given  with  a  wooden  paddle  made  from  a 
piece  of  smooth  oak  board,  about  an  inch  thick  and  perhaps  six 
inches  wide.  Just  enough  force  should  be  used  to  crush  down  the 
rib  bones,  so  as  to  settle  the  breast  bone  down  somewhat,  the  ob- 
ject being  to  give  the  breast  a  plump,  meaty  appearance.  After  the 
wings  are  closely  tied  against  the  body,  and  the  blood  has  been 
rinsed  from  the  head,  the  bird  is  immersed  in  ice  water,  barrels 
usually  being  provided  for  this  purpose. 

Where  birds  are  scalded  all  the  feathers  are  removed,  including 
those  on  the  neck  and  wings  left  on  when  the  bird  is  dry  picked. 
This  allows  the  housewife  to  use  the  whole  neck  and  wings  in  cook- 
ing, so  that  the  shrinkage  in  drawing  would  be  a  little  less  from  this 
method  of  picking  than  from  dry  picking. 

Josephine  Morse,  in  Poultry  Topics,  gives  this  method  of  killing 
and  picking  geese ;  hang  the  goose  up  by  the  feet  where  it  cannot 
bruise  itself.  Stick  a  narrow-bladed  sharp  knife  through  the  neck 
close  to  head.  Be  sure  to  sever  the  veins,  but  make  as  small  a  wound 
as  possible.  Let  the  goose  hang  till  dead.  Have  a  boiler  little  more 
than  half  full  of  boiling  water ;  throw  in  one  pail  full  of  cold  water ; 
take  the  goose  in  one  hand,  dip  in  the  water  three  times  and  then 
wrap  in  an  old  bag  or  carpet  to  steam  a  few  minutes.  Then  with 
the  thumb  and  fingers  remove  the  feathers  and  down  at  once  by  de- 
ginning  at  the  head.  Finish  by  singing  with  a  blaze  made  with 
shavings,  as  there  will  be  less  smoke.  Then  wash  in  rather  warm 
soap  suds  and  dip  in  cold  water.  A  small  vegetable  brush  is  nice 
for  the  purpose. 

Practically,  all  the  geese  sold  in  Boston  and  New  York  markets 
are  dry  picked,  but  for  some  markets  scalding  is  practiced.  In  that 
case  the  birds  are  dipped  quickly  into  hot  water,  sometimes  alter- 
nating the  dipping  with  cold  water,  and  the  birds  while  moist  with 
the  hot  water  are  wrapped  tightly  for  a  few  moments  in  cloth.  The 
operation  must  be  carefully  done,  so  that  the  head  will  loosen  the 


Money    in    Broilers    and    Squabs.  141 

feathers  and  yet  not  scald  the  skin  so  that  it  will  break  in  picking. 
Experience  is  required  to  perform  the  operation  successfully. 

The  bird  to  be  killed  is  taken  by  the  operator  and  held  between 
his  knees,  the  head  resting-  in  the  left  hand ;  a  firm  cross  cut  is  then 
made  in  the  upper  and  back  part  of  the  mouth,  severing  the  main 
arteries  of  the  head.  The  bird  is  then  taken  by  the  legs,  and  a 
quick,  sharp  blow  on  the  head  with  a  flat  paddle,  made  from  some 
hard  wood,  stuns  the  bird.  Picking  begins  immediately.  The  opera- 
tor sits  in  a  chair  beside  the  box,  with  the  bird  back  down  across  his 
knees,  the  head  being  firmlv  held  between  the  knee  and  the  side  of 
the  box.  The  feathers  are  first  removed  from  the  under  part  of  the 
bird,  beginning  at  the  abdomen  and  working  toward  the  breast. 
All  the  feathers  should  be  removed  as  the  work  progresses,  ex- 
cepting possibly  a  few  pin  feathers,  which  will  have  to  be  taken  out 
later  with  a  knife.  The  down  can  be  best  removed  by  wetting  the 
hand  and  passing  it  quickly  over  the  skin  of  the  bird. 


INDEX. 


BROILERS. 

Age,  broiler,  10. 
Air  cells,  24. 

outdoor,   54. 
American    Poultry    Food,    47. 
Animal   food,   47,   58. 
Asparagus   chickens,   16. 
Baking    soda,    54. 
Barley,    49. 
Beef   trimmings,    49. 
Bone,  granulated,  49,  56. 
green   cut,  48. 
meal,   54,   58. 
Bowel  disease,  36,  39,   43,  53.  54,  62,  63. 
Bran,   47,  52.   53,   54,    55,  56,   63. 
Bread   crumbs,   47,   49,   53,   56. 

waste,   49. 
Breeding    stock,    42,    49,    67. 
Broiler  age,  10. 

farm,    an   exclusive,    9. 
requirements,    11,    12,    15. 
runs,    31. 
Broilers   and   eggs,   19.    38. 
birthplace    of,    5. 
breeds  for,  10,  11,  42. 
celery-fed,  47. 
dry-picked,   64. 
eggs    and    fruit,    38. 
fattening.     52. 
Philadelphia,     11. 
plumping,    64. 
preparing   for   market,   63. 
scalded,   64. 

shipping  to  market,  66. 
shrinkage,    63. 
squab.   13,   16,   17,   21. 
Brooder  heat,  30,  31,  36.  37,  38,  39,  42,  50. 

houses,   35,   39,    43,    45. 
Brooders,    30,    31,    35,    37,    43,    50. 
capacity  of,  31,  32,  42. 
care   of,   44. 
carpeting,    32. 
condition    of,    35. 
floors    of,    36,    52. 
greenhouse,    32. 
outdoor,    32. 
painting  for  lice,   32. 
Broody  hens   vs.    incubators,   33,   43,   46. 
Buckwheat,   49. 
Burlap   for   roofing,   59. 
Cabbage,    49,    52,    53. 
Canary   seed,   46. 
Capacity,  brooder,  31,  32,  42. 
Capital,  too  little,  7. 
Carcass,   drawn,   13,   14. 
Carelessness,  7. 
Care   of  brooders,   44. 
Carpeting  brooders,  32. 
Celery,    47. 

fed  broilers,   47. 


Cellar  for  incubators,  23,  28,  34,  41 
Charcoal,  46,  47,  49,  50,  53,  54,  56,  63. 
Chick  grit,   44,   46. 

manna,    P.    P.    C,    54. 
Chicks,  care  of.  in  brooders,  39,  43,  44,  49. 
52,    53,    54. 
chilled,  50. 
costive,   63. 
1        dead   in   shell,    26,    30,   40,    41. 
diarrhoea   in,   36,   49,   63. 
fatality  among,  42. 
gapes    in,    54. 

leg  weakness  in,  36,  39,  48,  50. 
lice  on,  37,  54,  59. 
removing  from  incubator,  26,  28. 

34,   37. 
stunted  growth  in,  57. 
weak,    58,    63. 
Chickens,    asparagus,    16. 

doctoring,    39. 
Chilled    chicks,   50. 
eggs,   6,   24. 
Clover,    green   cut,    56. 

hay  chaff,  50,   56. 
meal,    46,    47,    49. 
Coal   ashes,   49. 
Commission   merchant,   16. 
Cooling  eggs,  23.   24,  25,  28,  29. 
Corn   cake,   49,  53,   54,  55  63. 

cracked.   47,   48,  49,  50,  52,   53,  54,   56, 

58,   63. 
meal,  46,  47,  49,  50,  53.  54,  56,  58,  63. 
Costiveness,   63. 
Cost   of  producing   eggs,   19. 

of  production,  9,  37. 
Cottonseed  meal,   47,   52. 
Cracked    corn,  47,  48,  49,  50,  52,  53,  54,   56. 
58,    63. 
oats,    47,    48,    49. 
wheat,  47,  49,  52,  53,  56,  63. 
CrLpples,  29,   63. 
Crop,   size,   of  chick's,   46. 
Crows.  IS. 

Dead  in  shell,  26,  30,  40,  41. 
Debt,   6. 

Diarrhoea,   36,   49,  63. 
Doctoring,    39. 
Douglas  Mixture,  54. 
Drawbacks,   18. 
Drawn   carcass,   13,  14. 
Drooping  wings,   57,  58,  59. 
Dry-picking,    64. 

vs.  scalding,  64. 
Eggs,    air  cells  in,  24. 

coolfng,  23,  24,   25,  28,  29. 
cost  of  producing,  19. 
evaporation   in,   25,   38,   40. 
fertile,   34,   40,  41,   67. 
handling,    30. 
hard-boiled,  46,  49,  53,  55,  56,  63. 


INDEX. 


Eggs,    heat    in,    28,    29,    30. 

helping  chicks  out,  35. 
holding  for  hatching,  26,  27,  30,  42. 
infertile,  25,  34. 
placing  in   incubator,  24,  30. 
raw,   53,   58. 

selecting,  27,  34,  37,  42. 
sprinkling,    23. 
stale   and    chilled,   6,    24. 
supplying   incubator,   42,   43. 
testing,  23.  30,  34. 
turning,    23,    24,    26,    30,    34. 
Evaporation  in  eggs,  25,  38,  40. 
Failures,  what  they  taught,  5. 

why  the,   5,  6,  40. 
Fatality   among   chicks,    42. 
Fattening  broilers,  52. 
Fed,   when   first,   53,   56. 
Feed,    condition   of,   54. 
dry,   47,    55. 

scalded,  47,  49,  52,  53,  54. 
troughs,  54,  56. 
Feeding,       mistakes    in,    15,    46. 

regularity   in,    46,    47,   48,   50,   52. 

54,    56. 
rule   in,   46,   47,   50. 
Felt  roofing,  60,  62. 
Fertile  eggs,  34,  40,   41,   67. 
Floors   of   brooders,   36,   52. 
Flour,  second  grade,  48,  53,  55. 
Food,    American   Poultry,   47. 
cooked,    48,   55. 
cost  of,  9,  37,  46. 
dishes,    52,    56. 
remaining    over,    56. 
sour,    46. 
F.   P.   C.   Chick   Manna,   54. 
Fountains,    drinking,    care   of,   46. 
Gapes,   54. 
Germ,    63. 

Granulated  bone,  49,  56. 
Gravel,   53. 

roofing,    62. 
Green    cut-bone,    4S. 
cut-clover,   56. 
stuff,   47,  48,  53,  56,  63. 
Grit,  44,  46,  47,  53,  56,  63. 
Ground   oats,   47,  49. 
Growth,  stunted,  57. 
Hatch    average    incubator,    25. 
condition  of,  36. 
when    to,    37. 
Hatches,   per  cent,  41. 
Handling  eggs,   30. 
Hard-boiled  eggs,  46,  49,  53,  55,  56,  63. 
Heat,  brooder,  30,  31,  36,  37,  38,  39,  42,  50. 

in   eggs,   28,   29,   30. 
Hearts,   sheep   or   cattle,   49. 
Helping  chicks  out  of  eggs,  35. 
Hens    vs.    incubators,    43. 

vs.  pullets  for  broilers,  37,  67,  68. 
Hot-water   incubators,   8,    42. 
Hulled    oats,   47,   54. 
Incubator,    average   hatch,   25. 
cleaning    trays,    -7. 
cellar   for,    23,    28.    34,    41   . 
eggs,   business  supplying,   42, 

43. 
placing   eggs    in,   24.   30. 
points  of  success,  27. 
record    for,   27. 


Incubator,    removing  chicks  from,  26,  28, 
34,   37. 
room,    25,    26,    28,    41. 

ventilation,   23,   28,   34. 
selecting,    28. 
shifting  trays,   27. 
ventilation    for,    37,    38. 
Incubators,    first  steps  with,  41. 
hot    water,    8,    42. 
moisture  in,  24,  25,  26,  27,  28, 

29,   30,   34,   38,    40,    41,    43. 
value  of,  33,  37,  41,  43. 
vs.    hens,    43. 
Inexperience,    7. 
Infertile   eggs,    25,   34. 
Johnny  cake,  49,  53,  54,  63. 
Lamps,    care    of,    23,    24,    25,    28. 

oil    for,    23. 
Land,  amount   required,  38. 
Lawn   clippings,   46. 
Lice,  37,  54,  59. 

in   brooders,    32. 
Leg  weakness,   36,   39,   48,   50. 
Lettuce,    46,    53. 
Linseed   meal,   48. 
Livers,   sheep  or  cattle,  49. 
Mangolds,   56. 
Markets,   12,  16. 
Meat    meal,    47,    48,    49,   54,   63. 

scraps,  46,  47,   48,   49,  53,  56. 
Middlings,   47,   49,    54,   55,    56. 
Milk,   47,   48,   49,   50,  53.   54,  55,  57,  63. 
Millet,    46,    47,    50,    52,    56. 
Moisture,   24„   25,   26,  27,  28,   29,  30,   34,   38,. 

40,    41,    43. 
Molasses,  52. 
Neponset   roofing,   59,   62. 
Nursery,   53. 

Oats,    cracked,    47,    48,    49. 
ground,    47,    49. 
hulled,    47,    54. 
rolled,   47,   49,   50,   53,   56,   63. 
Oatmeal,    49,   53. 
Oil   for  lamps,   23. 
Onion  tops,   46,   53. 
Overcrowding,   7,   59. 
Outdoor   brooders,  32. 
Oyster  shell,  47,   49,  53,  56. 
Painting  brooders  for  lice,  32. 
Parent    stock,    12,    37. 
Paroid  roofing,  62. 
Pepper,   52,  54.   63. 
Philadelphia  broilers,  11. 
Plumping,   64. 

Potatoes,    cooked,    47,    49,    54. 
raw,  49,  52. 
roasteel,   53. 
Poultry    Meal,    Spratt's    Patent,    55. 
Prices,   market,   8,   9,   13. 
Range,   11. 
Rape,  56. 
Raw   eggs,  53,  58. 

Red  Rope  Neponset  Roofing,  59,  62. 
Refrigerator  stock,   12. 
Removing   chicks,   26,   28,   34,   37. 
Rented   ground,   7,  18. 
Requirements,    9,    1G,    19. 

broiler,   11,    12,    15. 
Rice,   boiled,  63. 

Rolled   oats,  47,  49,   50,  53,  56,  63. 
Roof,  cheap,  59,  60. 


IT 


INDEX. 


Roofing,    59.    60,    62. 

burlap,   59. 

felt,    60,    62. 

gravel,    62. 

Paroid,    62. 

Red    Rope    Neponset,    59,    62. 

slate,    62. 

Swan's    Standard,    62. 

tar    paper,    60. 

tin,    62. 
Runs,    broiler,    31. 
Salt,    52.    54,    55. 
Sand,   course,   49,  54. 
Scalding,   64. 

vs.   dry-picking,   64. 
Scratching   material,    50. 
Shingles,    59. 
Shipping,    pointers  on,  14. 

to  market,  66. 
Shrinkage,   12,    63. 
Slate    roofing,    62. 
Spratt's  Patent  Poultry  Meal,  55. 
Spring  chickens,   12,   13. 
Sprinkling  eggs,  23. 
Squab    broilers,    13,    16,    17,   21. 
Stale  eggs,  6,  24. 
Straw,   50. 
Sulphur.  54. 

Swan's    Standard   roofing,   62. 
System,    lack    of,    7. 
Tagging,    11. 
Tar  paper  roofing,  60. 

Temperature   for   hatching,    23,    24,    25,    27 
28,  33,  36,  42,  50. 
Testing   eggs,   23,  .30,    34. 
That    tired    feeling,    7. 
Thermometer,   24,   28. 
Tin   roofing,    62. 
Trays,    cleaning,    27. 
shifting,  27. 
Trimming  wick,   23. 
Troughs,    feed,    54. 
Tuberculosis,  19. 

Turning    eggs,    23,    24,    26,    30,    34. 
Ventilation    in  incubator  room,  23,  28,  34. 

in   incubator,    37,    38. 
Warmth,  first  week,  50. 
Waste  bread,   49. 

"Water,   drinking,  46,  47,  53,  54,  56,  63. 
Weak  chicks,  58,  63. 
Weight.  11,  13,  15,  16,  17. 
Wet  weather,  18. 
Wheat,   cracked,   47,   49,  52,  53,  56,  63. 

whole,  49,  54,  56. 
Wick,    trimming,   23. 
Wing,   cutting,   57,   58. 

feathers,    pulling,   57. 
Wings,   drooping,  57,  58,  59. 


PIGEONS. 

Aviary,   72. 
Bath,   72. 
Bath  tubs,   72. 
Birds,    mated,  75. 
Breeding    life,    75. 
Canada    peas,    75,    76. 
Charcoal,  75,   76. 
Corn,      cracked,   75,    76. 
Kaffir,    75,    76. 


Disinfectant,    70,    76. 
Dragoon,   74,   75. 
Dressing,    mode    of,    73. 
speed  in,  73. 
Failures,    cause    of,    75. 
Feed,    75. 

amount  to,   76. 

cost  of,   76. 

time   to,   76. 
Feeding,    75,    76. 
Fly,    72,    76. 

Fountains,    care    of,    76. 
drinking,    76. 
Grit,  75. 
Hemp,  75,   76. 
Homers,   70,   72,   74,   75. 
House,    72,    76. 
Inbreeding,    75. 
Kaffir  corn,  75,  76. 
Dice,    70. 

preventive,  70. 

wing,  70. 
Dime,    76. 
Millet,   75,    76. 
Mortality.  75. 
Oyster  shell,  75,   76. 
Packing,    mode    of,    74. 
Parents   feeding  squabs,   neglectful,   75. 
Peas,  Canada,  75,  76. 
Persian   Insect   Powder,  72. 
Pigeon  milk,  76. 
Plumping.   73. 
Quarantine,  72. 
Runt,    75. 
Salt,  75,  76. 
Sawdust,  70., 
Sexes,   74. 
Shipping,   74. 
Snuff,  72. 
Squabs,    number  of,  72. 

parents   feeding,   76. 
weak   and   puny,   75. 
Start,  making  the,  74. 

time    to,    75. 
Tobacco   stems,   72. 
Trough;    76. 

Water,    drinking,    75,   76. 
Wheat,   75,   76. 
Whitewash,   75. 


DUCKS. 


Apoplexy,  95. 

Artificial  methods,   84,   95,  105. 

Barley  meal,   93. 

Bedding,  79,  82.   83.   95,  99. 

Beef  scraps,  79,  80,  83,  86,  88,  93,  94,  95,  96, 

97,    99,    104,    105,    106. 
Beets,  86,  88,  104. 
Bonemeal,   93. 

Bran,  79,  83,  86,  87,  88,  93,  94,  96,  97,  99. 
Bread    crumbs,    80,    83,    86,    88,   105. 
Breeding,    age   of,   78.   103. 

stock.  78,  79,  83.  84,  86,  87,  88,  91, 
95,    96,    99,    103. 

capacity  of.  80.  103. 
weight  of,  103. 
Broiler  ducklings,   94. 
Brooder,   cold,  80. 

size   of,    79,    89. 


INDEX. 


Brooding,  80,  82,  87,  90,  97,  105. 
Cabbage,  86,  94,  96.  99,  103,  104. 
Capital  required,  83. 
Carrots,  103,  104. 
Cayenne  pepper,   84 
Charcoal,    79. 
Chinese  trade,  94. 
Clover  hay,  79,  S3,  S6,  96,  106. 
Corn,  83,   93,  96,  99. 
bread,  87. 
fodder,    103,    106. 

meal,  79,  S3,,  86,  87,  88,  93,  94,  96,  97, 
99,  104,  105. 
Cracker  crumbs,  SO,  87,  88. 
Cramps,    95. 
Dandelion,  93. 
Diarrhoea,    80,    S7. 
Diseases,    contagious,   S4. 
Disinfectant,   S5. 
Dressing,     78,     79,     85,     95,     98. 
cost  of,  95. 
speed  of,  79,  98. 
Driving,  85. 

Ducks,      average  number  raised,  88. 
how  to  handle,  86. 
land,  79,   84. 

saleable  market,  80,  90,  97. 
selling  live,  94. 
shrinkage  in,  95. 
yellow-skinned,    79,    97. 
white-skinned,   79,   97. 
Ducklings,  removing  from  incubator,   97. 
teaching   to    eat,    82.    105. 
weight    of,    82,    86,    92,    94,    95, 
97,  106. 
Egg  organs,   inflammation   of.   85. 
production,  82,  86.  88,  99.  104. 
tester,  how  to  make,  97. 
Eggs,    cooling,    94. 

fertile,    79,   80,    86,   89,    93,   95,   96,   99, 

104,    106. 
for  hatching,  83,  S4,  90,  95. 
hard-boiled,  86,  87,  88. 
sale   of   infertile,    97,    104. 
testing,   97. 
washing,  79,  80,  84. 
Failures,  88,  106. 
Fattening,  80,  83,  90,  92,  93,  94. 
Feather-pulling,  79. 
Feathers,    market    value    of,    95. 

weight  of,   80. 
Feeding  breeders,   83.    So,   95,   96.    103. 

ducklings,    78,    79,    80,    S3,    86,    87, 

88,    93,    94,    97. 
grain,  78. 

Feet,    cold,    84. 

Fish,  102. 

Flour,   S3,   S4,   87,   105. 

Food,    amount  consumed,  82,  87,  103. 

cost  of,  79,  87. 

soft,  78. 

tainted,  S3,  96. 
Giddiness,  89. 
Gluten,  103,  105. 
Grain   feeding,  78. 
Grass,  104. 
Green    ducks,    cost    of,    SO.    87,    100. 

prices  of,  78,   93,   100.  102. 
weight,  of.  73. 


Green    food.    79,  83,  86,  88,  93,  94,  95,  96,  97 

105,  106. 
Grit,  84,  86,  88,  96,  99. 
Groats,  93. 

Hatching,  84,  85,  89,  92,  94,  95,  96,  105. 
Heat   of  brooder,   82,   87. 
House   floor,   79. 
Housing,  82,  84,  95,  96,  99,  104. 
Incubator,  temperature  of,  82,  89,  92,  96. 
Jewish   trade,    94. 
Keel,  84,  103. 
Labor,  84,  90,  100,  103. 
Land,  83. 
Laying,    78.    86,    99.    104. 

season,   79,   84,   103,   104,   105. 
Leg  weakness.   78,   85,   89,   94. 
Lettuce,  93,  1S6. 
Manure,    90,    103. 
Mating,  78,  79.  85.  86,  104,  105. 
Maturity,    age   of,   84. 
Milk,   SO,   87,   93,   97.   106. 
Moisture  in  hatching,  85.  89,  97. 
Molting,   79.   96. 

Mortality,   causes  of,  84,  88.   89,  90,  94. 
Nervousness,  84,  85,  86,  87,  105. 
Oats   ground,   83,   96.   99.   103.   104,   105. 
Onion    93. 
Overcrowding,   79. 
Over  fat.   84,  95. 
Oyster  shell,   78,  79,  84,  96,  99. 
Pekin  ducks,  86.  95. 
Pin    feathers,    95. 
Pioneer  days,  100.  102. 
Potatoes,   86,   88,   96.   99. 
Profit   and   loss,   S3,  85,   86,   87,   94. 
Rain   storms,   82. 
Range,  79. 
Requirements,  95. 
Rice,    93. 

Rolled  oats,  83.  86,  88. 
Rve,  green,  99,  103,  104. 
Salt,  86. 

Sand,    feeding,    78,    86,   87,    88,    93,    99. 
Shade,   78. 
Shipping.   86.    95,   98. 
Shorts,   83,   103.   104,   105. 
Snowy  weather,  82. 
Soil,    84. 
Spasms,    89,   94. 
Stench,    85. 
Stock,    breeding,    78. 
Success,  rules  for,  82,  90. 
Sun,   78. 
Troughs,    105. 

Turnips,  83,  86,  SS,  96,  99,  103,  104. 
Water,    bathing,  79,  SO,  84,  85. 

drinking.  78.  79,  S6,  92. 

for  ducklings,   78. 
Weakness,  80. 
Wheat,  93. 
Wings,   twisted,  79. 
Yards,      purifying,  79. 

size   of,   90. 


GUINEA    BROILERS. 


Demand,  108. 
Weight,  10$. 


TV 


INDEX. 


TURKEYS. 

Acorns,  110. 
Age,   delicate,   115. 
Air,   fresh.   112,   114,  116. 
Alive,    selling,    119. 
Appetite,    loss   of,   115. 
Artichokes,  110. 
Artificial  methods,  112. 
Ashes,    113,    119. 
Barley,    114. 

meal,    110,    114,    117. 
Beetroot,   110. 
Bowel  trouble,  114. 
Bread,     wheat,     112. 

stale,   119. 
Breast,    crooked,    110,    117. 
Breeding   stock,    113,    115,    116,    117,    118. 
Broilers,  turkey,  107,  110,  116. 
Buckwheat,    114,  118. 

meal,  110,  114. 
Butter,    115. 

milk,  10S,  109. 
Charcoal,    109,   112,    113. 
Cheese,   Dutch,  110. 
Chestnuts,    110. 
Clabber,    108. 
Cleanliness,    112. 
Club-foot,  109. 
Coal   oil,   113. 
Condition    powder,   114. 
Confinement,  109,  116,  117,  119. 
Constipation,   109. 
Corn,    108,    114,    116,    117,    118,    119. 
cake,   108. 
cracked,  112,  114. 

meal,  109,  110,  114,  116,  117,  118,  119. 
Coops,   care  of,   119. 
Crop,    fermentation   in,   112. 
Cruelty,   118. 
Curd,   110,   119. 
Delicacy,   cause  of,   115. 
Dew,   115. 

Disease,  prevention  of,  109. 
Dressing,  119,  120. 
Drooping,    112. 
Dry-picking,    109,   118,   120. 
Dust  bath,  119. 
Egg  record,  115. 
Eggs,    fertilization    of,    113. 
hard-boiled,   119. 
infertility   in,   112. 
Exercise,    116,    117. 
Fat,   minced,   117. 
Fattening,    108,   109,    110,   112,   113,    114,   116, 

117.    118. 
Feathers,  growth  of,  115. 
marketing,   114. 
saving,   119. 
wing,  116. 
Feeding,   114,   115,   117,   118. 

young,  108,  110,  112,  117,  118,  119. 
Filth,  109. 
Floors,  118. 
Flour,  115. 
Food,   109. 

Fountains,  drinking,  119. 
Foxes,  117. 
Gapes,  109. 

Gobbler,  109,  112,  113,  114. 
Grass,     112,  117,  118. 
seed,  119. 


Gravel,    112,    118,    119. 

Grit,   112,   114,   117,   118. 

Handling,   110,   113. 

Hatching,   108,  110,   112,   115,   117. 

Hawks,   117. 

Health,   sign  of,  US. 

lllr.ess.   signs  of,   109. 

Inbreeding,   109,   117,   119. 

Indigestion,  117. 

Insects,  118,  119. 

Killing,  109,  113,  114,  118,  119,   120. 

Lard,    113,    115. 

Liberty,    114,    116,    118. 

Lice,  109,  113,  119. 

Lime,  112. 

Locality,  112. 

Mangolds.  110. 

Marketing.  110,  113,  116,  117,  119,  120. 

Mating,  113,  115. 

Maturity,  113. 

Meat,  119. 

Middlings,  117. 

Milk,    108,  109,  114,  117,  118,  119. 

sour,  109. 
Mortality,  109,  112. 
Moth  balls,  113. 
Nests,  for  sitting  hens,  113. 
Oat   meal,   112,   117. 
Oats,   109,  110. 
Onions,   119. 
Overfat,  112. 
Overfeeding,  117,  118. 
Packing,  119,  121. 
Patience,   112. 
Pepper,    black,    115,    119. 
red,  108,   109,  115. 
Perches,    110,   116. 
Pills,    Carter's   Little    Liver,    115. 
Plumping,   120. 

Potatoes,   109,  110,  114,  116,  118. 
Range,  116.  117,  119. 
Red.   shooting  the,  113. 
Roosting,  110,  114,  116. 
Sand.   112,  119. 
Scalding,  120. 
Sex,    distinguishing,    113. 
Shipping,  108,  119,  121. 
Stock,  changing,  109. 
Swedes,  110. 
Sweet,  oil,  109. 
Turkevs,    Maryland,  118. 

Philadelphia,  118. 
Underfeeding,  118. 
Ventilation,  112. 
Walnuts,  110. 
Water,   110,  113,   117,   118. 
Weights,   112,   113,   114,  116,  117. 
Wheat,  112.  118. 
Whiskey.   112. 
Wine,   112. 
Wing  feathers,  116. 


OEESrii. 


African  geese,  124,  128,  129,  139. 
Age  of  geese,  122,  123. 
indication   of,  124. 
Apples,  128. 
Artificial  incubation,  130,  133,  134. 


INDEX. 


Attachment,  124,  125. 

Bailey,    ground,   135,   138. 

Bedding,  134. 

Beef  scraps,  133,  134,  137. 

Boston  geese,  124. 

Bran,  123,   134,   135. 

Breast-bone,   breaking  the,  140. 

Breasts,   Hanover  smoked,   127. 

Breeding  geese,   124,   130. 

Brooder,   133. 

Broodiness,   130.  131,   132. 

Brown  China  geese,  124,  125,  128,  129, 

Cabbage,  133. 

Canada   ganders,  123,  124. 

geese,    139. 
Carcasses,   drawn,  138,  139. 
Care,  128,  132,  133. 
Cast,   getting,  135. 
Charcoal,  137. 
Christmas,  126,  136. 
Clover  hay,  cut,  127. 
Cold  storage,  136. 
Confinement,   126,   128,   133,  135. 
Cooking  geese,  126. 
Copulation,    124. 
Corn,  127,  133,  135,  136,  137. 

meal,  123,   124,   134,  136,   137,   138. 

sweet,  127,  137,  138. 
Crop,  129. 
Demand,  123. 
Disease,  129. 
Domestication,  125. 
Dressing,     136,   137,   138,-  139,  140,   141  . 
Boston,  124. 
expert,  124,  138. 
Droppings,  127,  129. 
Dry-picking,    124,    140. 
Eat,    teaching   to,   134. 
Egg  production,  124,  125,  127,  130,  131. 

record,  123. 
Eggs,    average  weight  of,  128. 

boiled,   134. 

fertile,  124,  125,  131. 

gathering,  131. 

holding  for  hatching,  131,  132. 

infertility  of,   124. 

moisture  of,  132. 

sprinkling,  131,  132. 

testing,  131. 

washing,  130. 
Emden  geese,  124,  125,  126,  129,  139. 
Fat,  138. 
Fattening,    134,   135.    136,   137. 

establishment,  123,  124. 
pen,    136. 
time    for.    137. 
crop  of,  126,  127,  138. 
Feathers,    preparing,  139. 

marketing,  124,  126,  127. 
weight  of.   138. 
Feeding,  127,  129,  133,  134,  135,  136,  138. 
Feet,  frozen,  125. 
Fence,   133. 
Food;  128,  136. 
Gander,  wild,  122. 
Ganders,  127,    129,    132. 

bravery   of,   125,  128,  129,  132. 
Canada,   123,  124. 
freaks  of,  129. 
treatment    of,    125. 


138. 


Geese,    African,  124,  125,  129. 

age  of,  122,  123. 

Boston,  124. 

breeding,  124. 

Brown  China,  124,  125,  129,  138. 

Canada,  139. 

Christmas,  128,  136,  140. 

cooking,   126. 

cost    of    keeping,    126. 

cost   of   raising,    130. 

Embden,  124,  125,  126,  129,  139. 

Graylag,   124. 

Green,  122,  125,  126,  127,  128,  136,  138. 

marketable,  123. 

peculiarity  of  geese,  129,  130. 

Rhode   Island,   125. 

Toulouse,   124,   125,   126,   128,   129. 

White  China,  124,  129. 
Goose  oil,  123,  126. 

the  bill  of  a,  125. 
Goslings,   133. 

feeding,   133. 

treatment,  early,  131,  133,  135. 
weight    of,    128. 
Grass,  133,  134. 
Graylag  geese,  124. 
Grazing,  125,  127. 
Green  geese,  122,  125,  126,  127,  128,  136,  138. 

price  of,  127. 
Handling,  130. 

Hatching,  130,  131,  132,  134,  135. 
Hebrew  trade,  123,  128,  130. 
Herding,   127. 
Inbreeding,  128. 
Incubation,    artificial,  130,  133,  134. 

time    of,    130,    131. 
Johnny   cake,   134. 
Killing,    123,  124,  137,  138,  140,  14L 
Land  for  geese,  126,  130,  135. 
Laying  season,  130. 
Lettuce,  133,  134. 
Livers,   value  of,  127. 
Market,    Boston,  124. 

New  York,  123.  125, 
Marketing,    128,    134,    136,    140. 
Mating,   124,   125,   128,   129,   131. 
Meat,   123,  124  133. 
Michaelmas,  123,  125. 
Milk,  135. 
Moisture,  132. 
Mongrels,   124,   136,   140. 
Mortality,    123,    130,   134. 
Mules,  124. 

Nervousness,  125,  137. 
Nests,   care  of.  131. 
Oats,  127,  134,  137,  138 

ground,  135. 
Oil,  goose,  123,  126. 
Overcrowding,  133. 
Packing   for   shipment,    138,    139. 
Pasturage,  125,  127,  128,  133. 
Peas,  127. 
Picking,  126,  127. 

price  of,  124,  125,  138. 
Pin-feathering,  140. 
Potatoes,  boiled,  138. 
Product,  average,  124,  125,  130. 
Quills,  125. 
Range,  135. 
Rheumatism,  134. 


VI 


INDEX. 


Rye,  127. 

Salt,  137. 

Sand,  133. 

Scalding-,  139,  140. 

Sex,   distinguishing,  12S,  129. 

Shade,  133. 

Shelter.  125. 

Shipping,  138,  139. 

Shorts,  134. 

Shrinkage,  139,  140. 

Sitting,    size   of,   131. 

Sunstroke,  133. 

Temperature  of  incubation,  134. 


Testing-  eggs,  131. 

Toulouse  geese,  124,  125,  126.  128,  129. 

Trade,  foreign,  123. 

Hebrew,   123. 
Vegetables,  127. 
Washing-  eggs,  130. 
Water,   126,   133,   134,  135,  136,  137,   138. 
Weight,  dressed,  128. 
Wtt,   getting,  135. 
Wheat  meal,  138. 
White  China  geese,  124,  129. 
Wing,  broken,  135. 
Wood,  decayed,  136. 


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Proprietor    Central     Poultry     Farm 

HAMMONTON,  ATLANTIC  COUNTY,  NEW  JERSEY. 


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Proprietor  Bellevue  Poultry  Yards,  Hammonton,  New  Jersey 


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CAPITAL  STOCK,  $100,000.00. 


ELMER  C.  RICE,  Treasurer. 


Farm  at  Melrose,  Mass.,  Eight  Miles  North  of  Boston. 

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287  ATLANTIC  AVENUE, 


BOSTON,  MASSACHUSETTS 


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First 

10  days  </p| 


FPC 


...AND... 


CHICK  MANNA 


TURKEYS 


INTRODUCED  1884 


It  regulates,  supports  and  strengthens  the  fine  and  tender  organs  of  the 
little  creatures  in  a  very  desirable  manner  during  the  most  critical  period. 
"They  not  only  like  it,  but  thrive  wonderfully  on  it." — M.  K.  Boyer.  It  pre- 
pares them  for  the  more  ordinary  grain  feed.  The  remarkable  and  pleasing  re- 
sults have  merited  high  praise  for  F.  P.  C.  Chick  Manna,  North,  South,  East 
and  West. 

Testimonial,    Booklet    and    Printing  Matter  Free  on  Application.     Prepared 

F.  P.  CASSEL,  Lansdale,  Pa. 

Manufacturer  of  the  F.  P.  C.  Success  Chick  Feed,   Remedies  for 
Cholera,  Roup  and  Gape  Diseases,  &c,  &c. 


200-Egg  Incubator  f«  $  1 2 

The  wonderful  simplicity  of  the  Wooden  Hen  and  the  greatly  increased 
production  forced  hy  its  immense  sales,  makes  it  possible  to  offer  this  per- 
fect hatcher  for  SI  2. SO.  Self  regulating  and  guaranteed  to  hatch  as  large 
a  percentage  of  eggs  as  any  other  hatcher  at  any  price.  Send  for  the  free 
illustrated  catalogue  wita    *  colored  views.    CEO.  H.  STAHL.  Quir.ey.  II 


MAKE   MONEYS 
>-.         ~     hatching  Chickens  witW 
IgSSsajip^?!    thelicui  Incuhator.tliat^ 
M   low-priced,    high-grade.^ 

absolutely -reliable,  up 
to-<iatc  Hatcher.    Sure1 
profits.  Now  latbe  time| 

.to  prepare  for  the  early. 

I  hatching  season.  Writef 
to-day  for  a  beautilulj 
catalogue  PRKE, 
GEM  INCUBATOR  CO.i 
Box  Dayton,  Ohio' 


POULTRY  AND  AGRICULTURAL  BOOKS 

We  can  supply  any  book  not  out  of  print.    Send  for 
catalogue.        MICHAEL  K.  BOYER,  Hammonton,  N.  J. 


Poultry 
Supplies 

We  are  the  largest  Poultry  Supply  House  in  the  world 
and  sell  everything  pertaining  to  rearing  and  breeding 
Poultry,  Pigeons  and  all  kinds  of  Pet  Stock. 

We  manufacture  the  famous 

Empire  State  Incubators  and  Brooders, 

The  $5.00  Russ  Prize  Winning  Brooder 

SOLE  NEW  YORK  AND  EXPORT  AGENTS  FOR 

Prairie  State  Incubators  and  Brooders, 
Star  Incubators  and  Brooders 

All  Makes  of  GREEN  BONE  CUTTERS  and  GRINDING  MILLS 
WIRE  NETTING  and  FENCING 

Oyster  Shells        Grit        Charcoal 

Lambert's  Death  to  Lice 

Banner  Chick  Food  Chick  Manna 


The    Greatest    Egg    Producer    and    Health    Preserver   known, 

Banner  Egg  Food  and  Tonic 

and  thousands  of  other  things  that  we  cannot  mention  here,  but  are 
fully  described  in  our  immense  Illustrated  Poultry  Supply  Catalogue, 
mailed  free  anywhere. 

Every  Poultryman  should  have  our  catalogue,  as  it  is  the  most 
complete  one  published. 

Excelsior  Wire  and  Poultry  Supply  Co., 

W.  V.  RUSS,  Prop.  26  and  28  Vesey  St.,  NEW  YORK  CITY 

J 


UP-TO-DATE 

POULTRY 
SUPPLIES 


Our  department  of  "Poultry  Supplies" 
grows  and  grows.  Our  new  catalogue  of  these 
goods,  just  issued,  is  replete  with  good  things 
for  the  poultryman. 

Shall  we  send  you  a  copy  ? 

If  you  want  eggs  in  the  winter,  when  they 
bring  good  prices,  you  must  feed  your  poultry 
scientifically. 

If  you  want  broilers  early,  when  they  sell  well, 
you  must  hatch  them  in  an  Incubator. 

The  CYPHERS  is  the  best  Incubator. 

"Be  Up-to-T>ate. 
JOHNSON  &  STOKES, 

SEEDSMEN, 
217-219  Market  St.,  PHILADELPHIA,  Pa. 


OUR  LATEST  BOOK 

"Poultry  Plant 
Construction" 


Is  the  only  complete  work  of  its  kind. 
It  illustrates  Poultry  Buildings  on 
plants  that  are  in  Actual  and  Suc- 
cessful Operation,  and  it  contain* 
complete 

WORKING  PLANS  AND  ACTUAL  COST  OF 
PRACTICAL  POULTRY  BUILDINGS 

Including  Incubator  Houses,  Brooder  Houses,  Laying  Houses,  Duck  Houses,  Colony 
Houses,  etc.  Price  One  Dollar;  but  it  is  free  to -purchasers  of  Latest  Pattern  Stand- 
ard Cyphers  Incubators. 

If  you  have  not  already  received  a  copy,  send  for  large  main  annual  catalogue  of 
Incubators,  Brooders'  and  Poultrymen's  Necessities,  manufactured  and 
for  sale  by 

CYPHERS  INCUBATOR  COMPANY,  BUFFALO,  N.  Y. 

BRANCHES:  Chicago,  New  York,  Boston,  Kansas  City  and  San  Fran- 
cisco, U.  S.  A.,  and  London,  England. 


THE  SUCCESSFUL 

POULTRY  PAPER 


"^ 


becomes  such  through  the  belief  of  a  whole  lot  of  people,  that  it  will  give 

them  the  kind  of  information  they  need  to  make 

them  successful  poultry  keepers. 

FARM-POULTRY 

SEMI-MONTHLY 

is  a  shining  example  of  what  constitutes  a  "Successful  Poultry 
Paper."  Established  in  1883,  it  has  been  and  is  an  unfailing,  prac- 
tical, helpful  aid  to  the  utility  as  well  as  the  fancy  poultry  keep- 
ers all  over  the  country.  Through  its  enterprise  in  securing  origi- 
nal matter  and  illustrations,  its  tireless  energy  in  digging  deep  into 
all  matters  which  promise  to  yield  results  of  value  to  its  readers; 
its  quick  approval  and  support  of  ways  and  means  shown  to  be 
good,  and  its  promptness  to  condemn  fads  and  unpractical 
schemes,  which  would  prove  deterimental  to  the  poultry  interests, 
"Farm -Poultry"  has  come  to  be  regarded  as  a  safe,  sure  guide 
for  poultry  keepers  who  se?k  success,  and  through  its  careful, 
conservative  conduct,  has  established  an  enviable  reputation  for 
reliability.  Special  attention  is  called  to  our  practice  of  printing 
"show  reports"  in  full,  whether  winners  are  our  advertisers  and 
subscribers  or  not.  Will  nDt  such  a  paper  as  we  have  described 
be  helpful  to  you? 

Published  TWICE    A   MONTH    O  Ski  I  V    CICTV    f  Ell  TO 
(24  times  a  year)  for  UHLT    T  IT  \    \     U  EL  Ell  D 


SAMPLE    COPY  SENT  FREE 
ON  REQUEST. 


^. 


FARM-POULTRY  PUB.  CO.,  BOSTON,  MASS. 


MACHINE  FOR  POULTRY  AND  SQUAB  RAISERS. 

IT  WILL  PREPARE  EVERYTHING  NECESSARY  FOR  THE  FEED 

Wilson's  New  Green  Bone,  Shell  and  Vegetable  Cutters  make  rich  egg-pro- 
ducing food  of  green  bones,  scraps,  grit,  clam  or  oyster  shells,  and  all  kinds  of 
vegetables— wonderfully  increase  poultry  growth,  weight  and  health.  Wilson's 
Bone  Mills  make  cheap  fertilizer— 1  to  40  H.P.  Wilson's  Farm  Feed  Mills  grind 
fine,  fast  and  easy. 

WILSON  BROS.,  Sole  Manufacturers,  Easton,  Pa. 


The  Farmer's  Delight  is  a  Short  Drive  to  Market 

By  hard  gravel  roads!    This  is  what  you  get 
when  you  select  an 

Absecon  Highlands  Farm 

Just  across  the  meadows  from  Atlantic  City,  Rich  loam  soil,  pure  drinking 
water,  gently  rolling  land,  perfect  drainage.  There's  a  Fortune  Here  for  the 
Farmer,  Gardener,  Florist  and  Poultryman  who  buys  a 

5-ACRE  FARM  FOR  $150 

Payable  $5  Down,  Balance  $1.50  Weekly 

Send  for  illustrated  Booklet,  "The  Light  That  Guides  to  Wealth."  Tells 
you  all  about  it. 

GILBERT  &  O'CALLAGHAN,  703  Walnut 


In  the  fall  and  winter  la  worth  a 
barrel  In  hot  weather.  There's  a 
way  that  never  fails  to  fetch  eggs 
when  they're  wanted,  and  that  Is  to 
feed,  once  a  day,  In  a  warm  mash 

S&ierldaris 

-^CONDITION 

Powder* 

It  helps  the  older  hens,  makes 
pullets  early  layers,  makes  gloss/ 
plumatre  on  prizewinners.  If  you 
can't  get  it  we  send  one  package, 
25  ets.;  tlve,  81.    2-lb.  can,  81.20;  six 

for  85.    Ex.  paid.    Srnnple  pool  try  paper  free. 

I.  S.  JOHNSON  &  CO.,  BOSTON,  MASS. 


The  following  method  of  feeding  is 
based  upon  experience  : — Every  morning 
feed  early  a  warm  mash,  made  as  directed 
below.  Every  noon  feed  whole  oats, 
bailey  or  buckwheat.  Every  night  feed 
whole  wheat — corn  when  very  cold.  The 
cooked  mash  should  be  made  as  follows  : 
— Mix  thoroughly  (while  dry),  in  a  barrel 
or  box,  equal  parts  of  corn  meal,  shorts, 
wheat  middlings  and  ground  oats.  Take 
two  quarts  of  this  dry  mixture,  add  to  it 
one  quart  of  -well  cooked  vegetables, 
such  as  potatoes,  turnips,  beets,  carrots, 
table  and  kitchen  scraps;  add  a  little  salt 
for  seasoning.  To  the  ■whole,  in  a  pail, 
add  three  heaping  teaspoonfuls  of  Sheri- 
dan's Condition  Powder;  then  with 
boiling  hot  water  mix  the  whole  into  a 
mash  until  the  dry  meal  is  well  6calded. 
Do  not  have  it  sloppy,  but  a  crumbly, 
well  cooked  mash.  Feed  while  the  mash 
is  warm.  The  above  is  enough  for  30  to 
40  hens,  unless  of  large  Asiatic  breeds.\ 


POULTRY  REQUISITES 

Cyphers  Incubator  Company 

BUFFALO,  N.  Y.,  U.  S.  A. 

FIVE  BRANCH  HOUSES  (See  Below  MORE  THAN  1000  AGENTS 

SIXTY  ARTICLES  FOR  POULTRYMEN 

CIPHERS  COMPANY  SPECIALTIES.— Goods  of  our  exclusive  manufacture— 
NOW  NUMBER  MORE  THAN  60  USEFUL  ARTICLES.  They  embrace  every- 
thing that  the  poultry  raiser  needs  for  his  best  success.  BEAR  IN  MIND  that 
every  article  we  list  here  is  of  our  own  manufacture.  We  know  all  about  what 
goes  into  these  goods  and  guarantee  their   quality. 

Special  Winter  Ready-Mixed  Poultry  Foods 

CYPHERS  SCRATCHING  FOOD.— An  all  grain,  sound  grain  balanced  ration. 
Feeding  it  assures  healthy  fowls,  fertile  eggs  and  lots  of  them. 

CYPHERS  LAYING  FOOD.— A  palatable  ground-meal  mixture.  Analyzed  and 
balanced  for  heavy  egg  yield.     In  addition  to  grains,  contains  meat  and  clover. 

CYPHERS  CHICK  FOOD.— Made  of  steel-cut,  sound  grain,  free  from  waste. 
No  other  food  will  raise  an  equal  percentage   of   chicks. 

PUT  UP  IN  SEALED  BAGS  BEARING  CYPHERS  TRADE  MARK.     SEE  THAT 

SEAL  IS  UNBROKEN. 

CYPHERS  ROUP  CURE— CURE  GUARANTEED.— Prevents  and  cures  common 
colds,  discharge  from  nostrils,  "swelled  head,"  canker,  etc.,  IN  ALL  POULTRY. 
Is  used  by  dissolving  in  fowls'  drinking  water;  50c.  package  makes  twenty-five  gal- 
lons of  medicine.     We  pay  postage. 

CYPHERS  MEDICAL  CASE.— GUARANTEED  EFFICACIOUS.— Ten  stand- 
ard poultry  remedies  in  a  strong  case.  Recommended  by  the  highest  medical  au- 
thorities. Remedies  in  tablet  form  given  in  drinking  water.  Guaranteed  perfectly 
safe. 

Standard  Lice  Killer  and  Disease  Preventive 

During  the  winter,  when  fowls  are  confined,  there  is  a  great  need  to  disinfect 
their   quarters.     DON'T    NEGLECT    THIS    WORK. 

CYPHERS  LICE  PAINT.— Kills  all  lice  and  parasites  on  poultry  and  other 
stock.  Easy  to  use,  perfectly  safe,  extra  strong.  Agents  wanted  in  every  poultry- 
neighborhood. 

Trade  (NAPCREOL)  Mark.— THE  STANDARD  DISINFECTANT —A  non-poi- 
sonous fluid  that  kills  germs,  destroys  odors  and  prevents  disease.  Used  for  poul- 
try  and   in   the   household. 

ADDITIONAL  to  the  foregoing,  we  manuafcture  and  offer  for  sale  Alfalfa 
and  Clover  products;  Portable  Poultry  Houses;  Five  Styles  of  Brooders;  Safety 
Brooder  Stoves;  Revolving  Egg  Cabinets;  Three  Styles  of  Drinking  Fountains; 
Dry  Food  Hoppers;  Grit  and  Shell  Boxes;  Nodi  Charcoal  (in  cartons);  Poultry 
House  Heaters;  Brood  Coops;  Chick  Shelters;  Pedigree  Trays;  Pedigree  Nest  Box- 
es; Water  Proof  Sheeting;  Save-All  Egg  Preservative;  Fumigating  Candles;  Ovi- 
Napthal  Nest  Eggs;  Caponizing  Instruments;  Anti-Lice  Roost  Hangers;  Leg 
Bands;  Chick  Markers;  Egg  Testers;  Drinking  Cups;  Egg  Cases;  Egg  Packages; 
Shipping    Coops;    Food    Cookers;    Cramming   Machines;    Machines;    Spray    Pumps, 

OUR  1905  CATALOGUE:  Largest  and  finest  book  we  have  issued;  212  pages,  8x11 
inches.  Six  special  chapters  on  profitable  poultry  keeping.  More  than  450  illus- 
trations, including  latest  portraits  of  150  best  known  authors,  judges,  fanciers, 
owners  and  managers  of  the  world's  largest  and  most  successful  poultry  plants. 
One  hundred  pages  devoted  to  illustrated  description  of  Cyphers  Incubators, 
Brooders,  poultry  foods,  alfalfa  and  clover  products,  poultry  books  and  other  sup- 
plies. Articles  you  need  in  order  to  achieve  the  maximum  of  success  with  the 
minimum  of  expense  and  labor.  ADVANCE  SHEETS  ready  for  mailing  Decem- 
ber 10.  COMPLETE  BOOK  will  follow  to  each  address  January  1st,  1905;  not  a 
day  earlier  nor  a  day  later;  FREE,  postpaid  to  every  reader  of  this  "special  an- 
nouncement" who  will  send  us  his  name  and  the  names  and  addresses  of  two 
friends  or  acquaintances  who  are  interested  in  poultry  for  profit.  Mention  this 
paper  and  address  nearest  offce. 

BELLEVUE  POULTRY  SUPPLY  CO. 

Hammonton,  New  Jersey. 


IN  PREPARATION  NOW.  WILL  BE  ISSUED   WITHIN  3  MONTHS 

ANOTHER  BOOK  OF  MICHAEL  K.  BOYER  (Uncle  Mike) 

On  "DWARF  FARMS" 

showing  the  different  ways  in  which  small  farms  of  3  to  5  acres  have  been 
run  by  working  and  professional  men  from  the  towns  and  cities.  Pointinj 
out  how  these  people  secured  by  means  of  them  a  living  under  healthy  and 
pleasant   conditions   with   a   minimum  of   investment  and   risk. 

This  book  will  treat  of  the  growing  of  vegetables  and  fruit,  of  the  keep- 
ing of  poultry  and  bees,  of  the  raising  of  a  few  pigs  or  cows  by  and  for  the 
household,  of  the  methods  of  acquiring  land  and  buildings  cheap  and  on  in- 
stalments, and  of  the  ways  in  which  the  small  farmer  can  obtain  work  for 
his  spare  time. 

The  book  will  cost  50  Cents.  Send  your  orders  for  it  to  Michael  K.  Boy- 
er,  Hammonton,  New  Jersey,  or  to  "Farm-Garden  and  Poultry"  Publishing 
Company,  608  Chestnut  Street,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

MIDLAND  FEED  The?Si:^r ior 

TEN  BRANDS—  Each  for  a  specific  purpose. 

Each  one  complete  in  itself— NO  ACCESSORIES. 

Intelligent  Feeding  of  Poultry  always  returns  a  profit.  Improper  feeding  does 
not.  It  costs  no  more  to  feed  right  than  wrong.  The  nutritive  ration  must  be 
balanced  to  meet  specific  requirements.  Our  booklet,  "The  Science  of  Poultry 
Feeding,"  tells  you  all  about  it.  We  will  also  send  you,  on  request,  our  booklet, 
"Poultry  Fattening  Perfected,"  which  describes    our   new 

POULTRY   CRAMMING    MACHINE 

and  method  of  use;  also  trough  feeding,  and  our  special  brand  of  GRENADIER. 
MEAL,  the  only  Perfect  Feed  on  earth  lor  this  purpose  sold  under  a  specific  guar- 
antee. ■  Write  for  them  at  once  and  get  posted. 

The  MIDLAND  POULTRY  FOOD  CO. 

GUINOTTE  AND  EUCLID  AVE.  KANSAS  CITY,  MO. 

JOHNSON  &  STOKES,  Agents.  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

MEAT  MEAL  FOR  FEEDING  TO  POULTRY. 

Meat  furnishes  protein  or  nitrogenous  food,  so  much  craved  by  corn  fed  fowls, 
the  bone  furnishes  the  phosphoric  acid  and  lime  required  by  laying  hens.— 
Baugh's   Farmers'    Almanac, 

The  above  is  an  extract  from  an  annual  publication  by  Baugh  &  Sons  Com- 
pany, Philadelphia.  This  concern  prerpxes  and  sells  the  article  mentioned. 
The  product  is  composed  of  specially  selected  meat  and  fresh  market  bone  to 
which  some  of  the  meat  adheres.  The  crude  material  is  gathered  daily  by  Baugh 
&  Sons  Company  from  butchers  and  treated  or  rendered  while  fresh.  The  mois- 
ture and  excessive  grease  are  extracted  by  pressure.  The  crackling  is  then 
ground,  put  in  bags  ready  for  shipment.  The  analysis  shows  about  57  to  60  per 
cent,    protein,   16   to   17   per   cent   fat. 

It  therefore  is  an  animal  nitrogenous  product,  made  from  pure,  clean,  fat- 
enclosing  tissue. 

For  poultry,  mix  with  fresh  grains  or  with  corn  meal  or  wheat  brand,  moisten 
with  water,  using  from  one-eighth  to  one-quarter  of  the  meat  meal  by  weight, 
and    feed    at   regular   intervals. 

The  benefits  of  this  animal  food  for  poultry  are  probably  the  most  pronounced 
of  any  in  the  whole  range  of  its  use  as  a  food  as  well  for  cows,  hogs,  dogs,  etc. 

When  meat  meal  is  fed  to  poultry,  especially  during  the  winter  it  makes 
blood  to  heat  the  fowl  and  adds  vitality;  feathers  no  longer  fall  out.  The  hen 
is  comfortable  and  commences  to  lay  and  continues  doing  so  as  long  as  kept  in 
good    condition. 

For   further  information   address 

BAUGH  &  SONS  COMPANY,  20  S.  Delaware  Ave.,  Phila. 


Every  Farmer  Should  Be  His  Own  Builder. 


HOW   TO   BUILD    CHEAPLY    YOUR    OWN    HOUSES,    BARNS,    STABLI 
CHICKEN    HOUSES,   SILOS.  AND   ALL  OTHER   SMALL 
BUILDINGS  USED. 


_._^^ 

EVERY 

FARMER 

that  can 

Drive  a  Nail 

can  build  his 

Own  Houses, 

with  the 

help  of  the 

Farm  Hands 

and 

without  a 

Mechanic. 


V 


ErosmssmagSj 


rrrrr 


sffl 


... 

TRowt  View 


If  you  desire  plans  for  any  kind  of  a  building,  write  to  the  General  In- 
vestment and  Construction  Co.,  of  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  for  plans,  first  telling 
them  what  you  want,  and  the  sizes  desired.  They  will  send  you  such  plans 
and  descriptions,  showing  you  the  des'.gn,  free  of  cost,  and  if  you  wish  it 
on  a  payment  of  one  dollar  they  will  send  you  working  drawings,  showing 
how  to  cut  your  material  and  put  it  together,  without  the  help  of  a  mechanic, 
using  only  as  help  those  employed  for  farming  purposes. 

This  company  will  soon  be  ready  to  furnish  you  with  all  materials,  cut 
to  measurement,  and  nothing  will  be  left  to  do  on  your  part  but  to  put  it 
together,  like  so  many  blocks. 

Farmers  can  erect  their  Farm  Buildings  in  this  way  at  little  more  than 

half  the  cost  they  are  now  required  to  pay  for  the  same  work, 

and  do  it  equally  as  well. 

Nothing  improves  the  farm  so  mu  h  as  good  buildings  for  all  purposes, 
and  money  thus  spent  is  well  spent,  for  good  housing  for  the  stock  means 
good,  healthy  and  productive  stock. 

Good  barns  for  your  crops  means  less  loss  in  such  from  waste,  and  dam- 
ages  by   the   elements. 

The  plans  of  building  offered  by  the  General  Real  Estate  Investment  and 
Construction  Company  are  of  the  latest  design,  and  contain  all  of  the  latest 
improvements   in  the   line. 

Their  plans  of  barns,  stables,  chicken  house  and  silos  are  of  the  latest 
patterns,  and  even  though  you  are  not  ready  to  build,  it  will  pay  you  to  have 
them. 


THE  GENERAL  REALTY  INVESTMENT  AND  CONSTRUCTION  CO. 

ROOM  420,  308  CHESTNUT  STREET, 

PHILADELPHIA,  PA. 


<?' 


